Zelda's Journey
by Nan the Keyblade Master
Summary: We all know of the classic tale of the Hero of great Courage, the fair princess of Hyrule known for her kindness and Wisdom, and the demon king who seeks Power. But what if, in a strange turn of events, the roles were reversed?
1. Corruption

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

A crowd had gathered around Hyrule Castle's main courtyard, Link was sitting on his throne and overlooking the crowd before him. His people looked poverished and weak, overwhelmed by the taxes that he conjured up just so he could get more Rupees in his pockets. He had noticed that none of them were looking directly at them, not that he could blame them for not wanting to look at him, because something else was going down in the middle of the courtyard, and all he could do was grin wickedly.

"Your highness, it's your cue." A guard told him.

"Thank you." Link replied as he stood up and walked to the railing. "Attention, people of Hyrule! You are about to witness an execution here today. This young woman, leader of the so-called Hyrule Warriors, has attempted to take the life of your noble king. This silly rebellion that led on for a few months has finally come to an end. Her execution will be burning at the stake!"

"No way…" One of the starving young children could whisper, looking on at the beautiful woman tied to the stake.

"It can't be. There's no way she could do such a thing."

"Welp, she tried and failed. Sucks to be her." A man quietly said.

"There's no way that SHE could have done this, right?"

"The woman you are seeing before you, is none other than Zelda!"

Zelda opened her eyes, regaining consciousness and looked around, seeing where she was and her eyes widened in horror and then looked up to the king. "Link! LINK! Please stop this! I'm begging you! The power has gone to your head! There's still time for you to snap out of it! Listen to me, PLEASE!"

Link stared at the young girl. "I don't know what you're talking about." He said as Zelda's eyes widened with tears starting to fall.

"No…" She whispered. "I thought we were best friends! Remember long ago when you said you'd never hurt me? Please, try to remember!"

Link folded his arms and then closed his eyes. "Executioner, raise the torch."

"As you wish, your highness." The executioner said and grabbed a torch.

"Link! PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS!" She pleaded, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Silence, peasant! You would do well to be quiet!" Link shouted. "You think you can talk through to me, but you never will. The Link you once knew is _gone, _and it's high time you knew your place. Executioner, light her up."

The executioner nodded and then lowered the torch, where it started to burn the hay around the young girl, as she could only watch in horror as the fire crept up in front of her… and all she could think about, was all those years back when she and Link were still incredibly good friends.

* * *

_Several years earlier__…_

Link sat down underneath a tree and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and exhaling, and then opened his eyes to see Zelda in front of him. "Ack!" He yelped and knocked his head back, hitting the truck of the tree. "Ow!"

Zelda laughed. "Lazy as ever, I see." She teased.

"Do you really have to do that all the time?"

Zelda put her hand to her chin thoughtfully, shifting her eyes to the right in thought. "Yes."

Link rolled his eyes. "Oh, you." He chuckled as Zelda sat down next to him.

"So, are you ready for the test?"

Link raised an eyebrow. "Test? _What _test?"

Zelda frowned. "Don't tell me you've forgotten it!"

Link laughed. "No, I didn't." He said. "…Could you remind me what it is again?"

Zelda sighed. "You're hopeless. The test is to prove to your father that you will become the rightful king of Hyrule. I mean, for Hylia's sake, you're the prince for crying out loud!"

"And here I am, being lazy and my best friend is a peasant." He said with a sly grin.

"_Commoner!_" Zelda corrected and slugged him on the shoulder. "You know how much I hate it when you call me that, even _if _in a teasing manner."

Link laughed. "Yeah, I think I'm ready." He said and looked up to the sky. "I just hope my old man isn't too tough on me."

"He just wants to see you at your best."

"I know." He nodded.

"So, remind me what you have to do again?" Zelda asked.

"Some sword play, finding my way around the Lost Woods, withstanding the heat at Death Mountain for a minute, and of course, find the three medallions scattered throughout the town."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

"Oh yeah, and the final test is the Triforce, to see if my heart is truly pure to communicate with the sages in the Spirit Realm. Only _then _will I be considered ready to be king when my parents pass on."

Zelda giggled. "You'll be fine. You're the nicest guy out there. The sages will see you as a true king in heart."

"…Are you sure? I'm always lazy, I've been a troublemaker when I was little and… let's not forget the things I did as a teenager."

"I'm sure they'll be willing to look past all of that." Zelda gave him a reassuring smile. "I guarantee it."

"Here's hoping." Link sighed. "You think I'm ready?"

"I _know _you're ready. You can do this!" Zelda smiled.

"Thanks." Link chuckled. "Say, how about when I'm done with the test, we go on a date? It'll be my treat."

Zelda giggled. "Sure, I'd love to!"

Link nodded with a smile. "Thanks." He said and then looked toward the castle, aiming his hand at it and then clenching his fist. "Watch out, father. I'm gonna be ready before you know it!"

* * *

_The next day__…_

"Today marks a momentous occasion!" King Rhoam called out to his people. "Today, my son will brave the Lost Woods, Death Mountain, and collect three medallions scattered throughout the town, and see if he is worthy enough for the sacred Triforce to recognize him! But first, we will see if he's capable enough in a fight!" He declared as the audience watched to see Link brandishing a regular sword, getting into position with an Iron Shield with a guard in front of him, holding a sword of his own.

"Begin!" The guard yelled as the the two of them lunged at each other, both of them clashing as the audience watched in awe, Zelda being amongst the crowd and rooting for her best friend.

_Come on, Link. You can do this! _Zelda thought as Link blocked an attack with the shield and then slashed up to disarm the guard.

"It is finished! Link is the winner of this duel!" King Rhoam exclaimed as everyone clapped, and then Link set off to the Lost Woods.

_Sometime later__…_

Link returned to Castle Town after dealing with the intense heat of Death Mountain. There was a medical team on standby in case if Link collapsed, but he was determined to communicate with the Sages just like his own parents. He did down a bottle of water after he left Death Mountain to hydrate himself. All that was left were the medallions scattered throughout Castle Town.

He quickly searched the entire town, looking through garbage cans, throwing pots on the ground, inside trees, inside houses (much to some Hylians' dismay), near the castle walls, near the Temple of Time, inside the Temple of Time, inside a small pond… until eventually, he found them in a milk tavern.

"I thought they said they were scattered." Link said.

"They _were, _until some kid found them, thought they looked pretty and put them on the table while he went to go wash his hands." The bartender replied.

Link sweatdropped. "Well, I guess not everyone was at the ceremony."

"To be fair, he's only four." He said. "Now hurry before he comes back!"

Link nodded and then ran up the stairs where he ran back to the castle. "Father! I've found them!"

"Good job, my boy! Where did you find them?" He asked and then Link explained what happened, to which Rhoam let out a hearty laugh. "Kids, you gotta admire their innocence." He said. "Anyway, you've found them, now let us go into the Temple of Time."

As they went to the Temple of Time, they spotted Zelda nearby. "Oh, hello young Zelda." Rhoam greeted warmly.

"Hello, your majesty." Zelda bowed.

"You here to watch Link complete his trial?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"Excellent!" Rhoam grinned. "You can watch Link complete his trial with me." He said as they walked into the Temple of Time where Rhoam put the medallions into the pedestal and then pressed his hand on the wall, where a secret passage opened up before them.

"I thought the Triforce was within the castle walls."

"There's a secret passageway in the castle where your mother and I take so we can listen to the sages." Rhoam explained, which Link nodded in understanding and walked to the Triforce, and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and placing his hand on the Triforce, waiting for it to officially recognize him as the next king.

_You are a wise Hylian, Link. You are destined to become a great warrior._

Link smiled. "Thank you."

_However__… __you heart is not in balance. You have become lazy over the years, you haven't focused on your studies for a long time, you have also become doubtful that you will inherit the throne, you have become someone you are not, and in your teenage years, you have lusted over a Gerudo and had impure thoughts about her for a time, that you did not even control, before you lost interest in that Gerudo. You have become blind in your thoughts, sight, and body. You are not ready to become king over the land of Hyrule. You are not worthy to wield the Master Sword in the Lost Woods. You are ambitious for the throne, but we do not grant you that power. Your father has worried about you a long time, and it is high time for you to get your act together. You are dismissed._

Link looked like he had seen a Poe. Did he just hear all of that? No, it couldn't have said that… it's lying!

"I was afraid of that."

Link stiffened a bit and turned his head to see King Rhoam looking immensely disappointed while Zelda looked worried, and a bit shocked. "You… you heard all of that?"

"I did." Rhoam nodded. "I was hopeful that it would look past all of that, but I knew that deep down, the Triforce would reject you. You have become a slothful boy… and I was afraid that the worst would come to pass."

"But… father, I passed the test, didn't I? I completed all of this, I should be communicating with the sages… with the Gods!"

Rhoam sighed in disapproval. "Link, you don't get it. This test was to show that you are worthy of receiving guidance from the gods… and why would they guide over a boy who lusts after women and is lazy all the time, not to mention you've been far behind on your studies. Let this be a lesson for you, Link."

"But I know everything about the Kingdom and its rich history!"

"Do you now? Do you know anything about your ancestors? Do you know what the Master Sword is?"

"Of course I do, the Master Sword is… er… a… sword… filled with… dark power?"

King Rhoam sighed. "How disappointing. You are not worthy to inherit the throne, nor will you ever be. In my eyes, you want the throne for your own gain and status, which the throne is much more than that. Link, I am _very _disappointed in you. I'm afraid that your sister, Aryll, will have to inherit the throne. She is _far _more worthy than you are."

"Why Aryll? That miserable low-life of a girl is nothing but an airhead!"

"At least that _airhead, _in my point of view, has more potential and shows much more promise than you."

Link growled in anger. "You dare put me below that pathetic excuse of a princess?!"

"This attitude toward your sister is another reason why you are not inheriting the throne. You ought to treat your subjects with respect, and if you don't start being nice to your sister, you won't be gaining any respect for the people. After all, you constantly go in their houses day after day to smash pots for Rupees. Your greed is unfathomable." He said and then turned around. "You disappoint me, Link. I was hoping the Sages will prove me wrong, but that doesn't seem to be the case. We're done." He said and walked off.

Zelda stood there, not knowing what to say but then looked at Link who stood there trembling in rage. "Link… are you okay? Do you want to go grab something to eat and talk about this?"

"…I'm not hungry." Link said and walked off, not even looking at Zelda as he walked by.

"Link…" Zelda whispered and then looked toward the Triforce before walking off as she was the last one to exit the Temple of Time. "Gods, please watch over the castle tonight." She whispered in prayer before walking back to her home, while she couldn't help but shake the feeling that something horrible was about to happen.

* * *

_Later that night__…_

Link paced around his room, grumbling to himself. "It's not fair… I should be worthy to receive the power, not that pathetic excuse of a girl!" He exclaimed, and with a mighty scream, he punched his bed and then threw one of his pillows toward his dresser, which knocked over a picture of him and Zelda smiling and posing in the picture. "Everyone held me back, that's why I couldn't receive the power… especially YOU, Zelda!" He spat, crushing the picture with his foot and then threw another pillow at his desk before flipping it over in disgust.

"No… I _am _worthy to receiving the power. I will prove everyone wrong!" He exclaimed and then opened up his window and jumped into the moat, right when Rhoam knocked on the door.

_"__Link? I want to talk to you about something. Link?" _Rhoam's voice sounded from behind the door before opening it. "I just want to-" He saw the mess, but then noticed the window open. "…That fool!" He exclaimed and then ran off.

Link made it to the Temple of Time and noticed the medallions were still in their place, chuckling that his foolish father forgot to grab them during their little spat and then pressed his hand on the part of the wall and he walked over to the Triforce. "The throne _will _be mine… and I will see to it that it will come true! Much more so than that idiot Aryll!" He said and then got closer to it, reaching his hand toward it.

"LINK!"

Link turned his head to see Rhoam approaching him. "Don't you dare put your hand on the Triforce! It has given its word and you will not receive a different answer!"

"You are a fool, father! I _am _worthy to inherit the throne. You will see for yourself!" He said and touched the Triforce. "I am inheriting the throne!" He declared, when suddenly there was an explosion of light that knocked the two to the ground.

* * *

_With Zelda__…_

Zelda let out a gasp as she sat up from her bed, panting. "What… what was that?" She asked, unaware on her right hand the Triforce of Courage appeared on it before it disappeared. "Was it a bad dream?" She wondered.

* * *

_At Gerudo Town__…_

A lone dark skinned man ate his meal when he noticed his right hand glowing as he noticed the Triforce of Wisdom on it. "…By the gods…" He quickly got up from his meal and ran off.

"Father? What's going on?" A Gerudo girl asked.

"The prophecy is being fulfilled!" He exclaimed. "This could only spell disaster for the land of Hyrule!"

* * *

_Back with Link__…_

The light disappeared as Link got up and noticed the Triforce was no longer there, but he had noticed the Triforce of Power glowing on his right hand before it disappeared. "What… what happened?"

"YOU FOOL!" Rhoam shouted. "Your heart was inbalanced when you touched it, and now the Triforce split itself into three! You obviously have the Triforce of Power in you, and who knows where the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom are!"

"I have the Triforce of Power… this means that I have the power to inherit the throne!"

"You have the power of a thick headed dimwit! You learned nothing!"

"Father, you shut up right this very second! Everyone will bow down to me!"

"No, they will not bow down to a tyrant!"

"I am your king, you should obey _ME!__"_

Rhoam scoffed. "I obey to no one but the gods. Listen to your father, Link… and return the-"

"I listen to no one but myself and the gods. You are no father of mine!"

Rhoam's eyes widened before a tear fell from his eye. "I see… the son I once knew is long gone." He said and then unsheathed his sword. "I will set things right."

Link unsheathed his own sword. "Bring it, old timer!" He exclaimed as the two swung their blades, clashing a few times before Link kicked him in the knee before slashing him over and over again before knocking the sword off of Rhoam's hand, and then he impaled him in the gut.

"Nnngh!" Rhoam groaned and then looked directly at his son. "Link… how could you…?"

"Nothing is going to stand in my way. I have the power… and nobody will stop me."

"Y-you… you are no son of mine…" He whispered as Link removed the sword from his gut as Rhoam fell to the ground and blood poured out from his body.

Link stood before his corpse, chuckling before laughing maniacally. "Oh, this feels so GOOD!" He laughed. "Can you hear me, gods! This was your pathetic king?! Well, he is no more! I will take the throne and become king and nothing will stand in my way!" He declared, laughing like a madman before he headed off to the castle, ready to take it for his own.

* * *

**Helloooooo everyone! Just thought i'd come in here and say hi... oh, and post a story just for fun! Hope you'll enjoy this one!**

**Anyway, for those who don't know, Nintendo, of ALL people, leaked Stage Builder in Smash Ultimate. I mean, not like they've leaked things before. *looks at Ganondorf in Smash 4 and the Castlevania music* Nope, not at all! Nothin' to see here folks!**


	2. Taking Over

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda woke up in her bed the next morning, stretching. "Mmm… wonder what that was about last night." She wondered before getting up and got herself dressed, then looked outside and noticing it was overcast outside. "Oh, looks like it's going to rain." She said and then walked out of her room to get the newspaper on the front porch before she went to make herself some breakfast.

She opened the door and bent down to grab the paper, humming to herself and then walking back in, closing the door behind her as she went to make some breakfast and noticed that she was by herself again, which was no big deal to her. Her father worked at the bank and her mother is a nurse at the Hyrule Senior Retirement Home. They usually left right before the paper got there, so it was usually Zelda's job to get the paper. She sat down at the table and began to eat while reading the paper, and read the headline that nearly made her choke on her toast, making her cough. "Wh-what?!"

"King Rhoam Hyrule Murdered at Temple of Time Last Night." The column read as Zelda read it thoroughly. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. King Rhoam had been murdered? Who would murder such a benevolent king that everyone adored? This _had _to be a joke, right?

"Link… does he know?" Zelda wondered as she got up, downing her orange juice before hurrying out of the house, but not before going to the Temple of Time to make sure she wasn't reading things wrong, and she saw a large crowd had already gathered around the crime scene where guards were holding them back. "What's going on?" She asked.

"There's been a murder here last night. No one knows who did it." The guard replied.

"Who was murdered?" She then asked, hoping that the answer wasn't true.

The guard said nothing, but turned his head. "I imagine you read the paper?"

"Yes."

"It's true." He said and moved to the side to see them covering up Rhoam.

"Wh-what?!" Zelda put her hands over her mouth in shock. "Who… who would do this?!"

* * *

Link found himself sitting on the edge of his own bed, looking like he's seen a Poe. "Did I just kill my own father…?" He asked, wondering if what had transpired yesterday actually did happen. Did he actually do it? Was it all just a dream? There's no way he could have done it. It was most likely just a nightmare and today was the actual day of his test!

He looked at his wrist, and then saw the Triforce of Power on it, his eyes widening in shock. It felt like such a blur…

"Oh Hylia… I actually did it." He quietly said, flashing back to what happened after he killed his father. He had gotten into the castle without saying a word to everyone, having the bloodied sword in his sheath and then went to bed and not said a word. He wondered why he didn't do a killing spree at that moment.

He heard the sounds of screaming and wailing right after… it sounded like his mother had just found out, and then now his sister was crying too. He could hear the both of them in the hallways.

It irritated him to no end… _it must be stopped. _

He then heard his door opening up to see his mother approaching him, with tears staining her cheeks. "Link… there's been a tragedy… your father is dead!"

_So it was true. _Link thought to himself. "When did this happen?"

"Late last night. Link… you didn't kill him, did you?"

"No."

"That's good." She smiled and then hugged him. "We must go to the cemetery at once."

"Right." Link nodded as the Queen walked away, while Link stood there and clenched his fists, then having a mad grin on his face. "Well now… let's have a funeral, _shall we?__" _He smirked.

* * *

About a few hours later, Zelda was within the large crowd at the cemetery, watching the beloved king being lowered into the grave while their own pastor said a few words about the king. She saw Link near the Queen, but she could tell something was off about him. Everyone looked sad but Link looked indifferent. Had the king's harsh words to him affected him that much and he's still angry about it? No… of course not, he would never hold a grudge, she _knew _her best friend. Is this how he coped with loss?

Once the funeral was over, Zelda approached the prince while Dampe proceeded to bury the good king. "Link?"

Link looked at Zelda for a few seconds before looking back down to the grave. "Zelda." He said, hiding the venom in his voice.

"Are you okay? It must be hard losing a family member. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Yeah, it sure is…" Link quietly said.

"Do you… want to talk about it?"

"No." He said and looked away. "It feels surreal that he's dead."

Zelda looked at him in concern. His tone of voice didn't match the look in his eyes. Something was really off, she could just tell.

"Link, you can tell me. You usually do." Zelda said. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Link said nothing and looked up to the sky. "There's a change in the air, Zelda… and we all need to be ready for it."

"Huh? Link… what are you saying? You're acting really weird."

Link turned to her, this time showing off a hateful look. "Leave me alone, woman." He said spitefully and walked off,, leaving a shocked Zelda alone.

"Wh-where did that come from?" Zelda wondered, taken aback by how he treated her.

"People handle grief in their own ways. I'd take what he said with a grain of salt." Dampe said.

Zelda looked at Link leaving. "Link… I hope you'll be okay." She whispered and walked away, but not before putting her hands together. "Gods, please watch over their family over this trial that has happened to them." She prayed and then walked off.

* * *

Later that night, Link sat on his bed and with a deep breath, he stood up. It was time.

He grabbed his sword and sheathed it, then walked over to his mother's room and opened the door. "Mother?" He called out, but saw no one in the bedroom. "Hmm?" He closed the doors and turned to a guard walking by. "Excuse me, have you seen my mother around?"

"She's in her study."

"Thank you." He nodded and walked off as the guard walked by, but then stopped and turned to see the sheath on Link's back. He found it a bit odd but he shrugged it off. Maybe the prince was going to let the queen know he was off to go find his father's killer.

Link walked up to the study and opened up the door. "Mother?" He called out.

"Out here, Link."

Link followed the source of the voice and found that she was out in the balcony drinking some wine. He walked out and saw her leaning on a railing, looking out toward the kingdom. "Everything okay, mother?"

The queen turned around. "No… your father is dead and I'm resorting to drinking. Typical." She muttered.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. We'll get through this together." She said and then hugged Link. "We have to stay strong." She whispered and then felt something on his back. "Honey, what's with the scabbard on your back?"

"I'm planning on going out and avenging our king."

The queen smiled. "Oh, honey… avenging doesn't suit you." She said and then turned around. "Believe me, darling… I know you enough that you wouldn't want to harm a soul." She took a sip of her wine and looked at the stars. "Still, we have to move forward."

"Yes, we do." Link said, slowly reaching for his sword's hilt.

* * *

Zelda walked over to the castle, having baked a cake for the royal family and was carrying it over. "Oh, I hope this will lift their spirits up." She said and then looked up to see the queen over the balcony. "Oh, the queen is out tonight?" She asked and thought it would be best to get her attention. "Hey! Your majesty! I'm bringing you a cake!" She called out to the queen… and suddenly, the queen fell limp on the balcony… before she fell to the ground, landing with a thud in front of her.

Zelda stared at the Queen's body in shock, before her eyes widened in horror and then let out a blood curdling scream and dropped the cake, splattering it all over the ground. "OH MY GODS!" She screamed, unaware of Link hearing Zelda's screaming.

"Tch, let her scream." Link said and then started to walk away.

"Hey mother~!"

Link's eyes widened. _Her._

"I was wondering if-" Aryll stopped to look at Link. "Bro? Where's mom?"

"She stepped out for a bit."

"Huh? What do you-" Aryll saw the blood dripping from the tip of Link's sword. "Why is your sword-" Her eyes widened. "No… NO! You didn't! You killed mother, didn't you?!" Link looked at her and said nothing, his dark expression saying it all. "You did! And you killed father too! Why?!"

"It's so I can become king of Hyrule, not you! It's so I can sit in the throne!"

"What do you mean by that?! I can rule Hyrule far better than some tyrant!"

Link glared at her. "Oh, is that right?" He asked and then walked to her.

"Wh-what are you doing?! Get away from me, you psycho!" She shouted, but then Link grabbed Aryll's wrist. "Let go! LET GO OF ME!" She screamed, and then Link smirked and then put his sword to him and sliced his chest, making it bleed.

"AAAGH!" Link screamed in pain before handing the sword over to Aryll's hand, before using his blood to smear it on Aryll's cheek.

"What- what are you…?!" Aryll demanded to know as Link held on to his chest while sitting on the floor.

A guard came in a panic. "Link! Aryll! Your mother has been-… what in Hylia's name?!"

"It-It's not what it looks like!" Aryll exclaimed.

"It… it's horrible… I had found out Aryll killed father and was plotting to kill mother next. I tried to stop her but it was too late…" Link winced. "I tried to reason with her but she hit me with that dumb sword… she's plotting on taking over the throne!"

"Sweet little Aryll… how could you do such a thing?" The guard asked in horror.

"No! No, it's not what it looks like! He's lying!"

"Link, we're going to have to take you to the infirmary to patch you up. Aryll… I'm afraid you'll have to come with me."

"No! You don't understand! Link did all this!"

"Link would not do something this horrendous. He's a far better ruler than you." The guard snarled and then grabbed Aryll, dropping the sword. "Come on, we are out of here. We are going to put you in a special room for a very long time… and it's not going to be in the castle!"

"NO! LINK, HOW COULD YOU?! I THOUGHT WE WERE FAMILY!" Aryll screamed, but it fell on deaf ears as her screams faded away while another guard came in and pulled Link to the side.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up." He said.

"R-right." Link winced with a nod. It had occurred to him that he should've sliced his arm up instead, but what's done is done.

* * *

Just outside, a few guards were trying to console Zelda from the horrifying scene that had just happened, when one guard heard Aryll screaming from the doors. "What's going on? Why is Princess Aryll screaming?"

"She's plotting on overthrowing everything and taking over the throne." A guard explained. "She killed her parents and almost killed Link."

"NO! IT'S NOT TRUE!" Aryll screamed.

"What?!" The other guard exclaimed. "Sweet little Aryll? But she wouldn't hurt a fly… especially when one of her friends is that so-called bug queen."

"Looks can be deceiving." The first one muttered. "Take her away to the cells."

"Yes sir!" The other saluted and the two of them took Aryll away, with her kicking and screaming while Zelda had snapped out of her daze and looked at Aryll.

"Sweet little Aryll did all this?" Zelda wondered in shock. A sweet girl such as Aryll killing her parents in cold blood? No… that doesn't make any sense. Aryll wouldn't do such a horrid thing!

Zelda clenched her fists. She was going to get to the bottom of this.

* * *

**I was going to post this chapter after playing around with Joker in Smash tonight, but apparently, I can't do THAT thanks to the dumb server errors!**

**So instead of me explaining my thoughts on Joker's play style, i'm just gonna ask this instead:**

**To those who actually HAVE Joker, how is he? I think i'll have to wait 'till morning. (And posting my thoughts on Touhou Galaxy too.) **


	3. Coronation

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda lay in her bed, looking at the ceiling and looking like she hardly got any sleep… but how could she? Last night felt like such a blur. She could vividly remember that watching the queen falling to her death, someone having the guts to assassinate _her _right after King Rhoam was murdered. That someone being Aryll.

But that didn't make sense to her. Ayrll is a sweetheart and she would often deliver flowers to her, not to mention she is good friends with Agitha, the self-proclaimed bug queen in Castle Town. She wanted to get to the bottom of this last night, but some of the guards decided to escort her home for her own safety, where she had tried to fall asleep, but recalling the traumatic event of watching the queen fall proved to be much more difficult than she hoped.

Not only that, but the thought of Ayrll being the murderer and trying to kill Link last night wouldn't leave her mind. Link was all alone in the castle now, all by himself with no one but servants and guards. She still recalled that Link was out of it after Rhoam's funeral. She knew he was out of it, but the look on his face and the way he said those words: _"There's a change in the air, Zelda… and we all need to be ready for it." _Followed by him giving her a nasty glare and telling her to leave him alone.

What did Link mean by that? Why was he giving her the cold shoulder? Did he know something that no one else did but didn't want to tell anyone? These were the questions that bugged the girl, and she needed to get to the bottom of this.

She got up from her bed, and walked out of her room and straight out of the house, not even caring about breakfast or the paper. There was something that _needed _to be answered… and she hoped Aryll would be allowed visitors.

* * *

"Princess Aryll." The warden walked up to the miserable girl in her cell. "You have a visitor."

"I do?" She quietly asked as the warden turned his head and motioned the visitor to come, which was none other than Zelda. "Zelda!"

"Princess Aryll, I'm glad you're okay." Zelda smiled.

"It's good to see you too!" She exclaimed, forcing a smile.

Zelda could see the bloodshot eyes from Aryll, along with a forced smile. It occurred to her that people have been treating her badly ever since she was falsely arrested. Seeing such a beautiful young princess in such a horrid state broke her heart.

"Aryll, I want to ask you something."

"If it's about me killing my parents, then no, I didn't do it. People have come and visited me, only to treat me like dirt the minute they see me. In fact, some old man literally spat on me because of what I "did"."

"Good Hylia…" Zelda whispered. "Everyone's jumping to the same conclusion… but not me."

"I know."

"But I want to know something. If you didn't kill them, then who did?"

Aryll frowned. "Who do you _think?__"_

Zelda's eyes widened. "…No, it couldn't be."

"If you're thinking of my big doofus of a brother, you're exactly right. _He_ threw me in jail."

"Link wouldn't do that! Sure, he's a dork, but he wouldn't go _that _far."

"That's what we all thought… and then the test happened." Aryll growled. "I'm sure you're familiar with it. How the Goddesses turned him away because his heart wasn't in balance."

"I was there." Zelda nodded. "But… I know your father and Link argued but I never thought of Link as a murderer."

"That night changed him. He killed father in cold blood, followed by mother the next night. I learned of what happened when I saw the blood on Link's sword. I don't know what caused him to snap, but that's not the brother I used to know."

"No, this doesn't make sense. He's my best friend… I know him very well. He's a kind Hylian!"

"Obviously, you don't know him _enough.__" _Aryll turned her head away. "He wants the throne, and he got it. I have a feeling his coronation is bound to happen at any time. He's a tyrant."

"Aryll, you're speaking nonsense. Link would never-"

"Zelda, your best friend is _gone. _You may not see it now, but you will eventually." Aryll folded her arms, looking angry. "He's no brother of _mine_…"

The change of tone in Aryll's voice nearly broke Zelda. She never saw her this angry before.

"Aryll, how can you say something so horrid?"

"It's the truth." Aryll quietly said, seeming to be sad now. "Zelda, listen to me carefully. Link is very dangerous and is highly unstable. Don't even trust him. He's a mad man."

Zelda clenched her fists, and then looked away. "Link is my friend… he would never do this…"

"Look, I know you're having a hard time believing that Link did this, because you two are really close, I get that. I'm having a hard time believing it myself… but I've come to grips with it. The fact that I'm wrongfully in this cell speaks the truth. Zelda… you have to stay vigilant. He's changed, and not for the better."

Zelda took a deep breath, not sure what to say. "…Thank you for telling me this." She said and then walked out, not sure what to really say. She wanted to believe Link is truly a good person, but what Aryll said to her just wouldn't leave her alone.

Is Link truly a good person? Or is he just a maniac?

* * *

_A few days later__…_

Zelda had awakened from her slumber, Aryll's words still sticking to her. She hasn't seen her since that day, and she hasn't really spoken with Link for a while, not that she didn't want to. Every day, she would try to ask to speak with Link, but the guards wouldn't let her, which confused her since they would always let her in. Things weren't adding up. She had sent a few letters to Link asking if he was okay, but he hadn't responded.

She walked out of her room and, after having breakfast, she grabbed the newspaper and saw something that caught her attention.

"Public Event: Link to be crowned King this morning at ten AM."

Zelda had to read it again to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Link… being crowned king? None of this was making sense to her, but she also was thankful that it was a public event, so there was a good chance she would be able to speak to Link again.

She walked straight to the castle, hoping she would get the answers that she needed to hear. Was Aryll right, or was she speaking actual nonsense?

As soon as Zelda turned a corner, she noticed a carriage from Kakariko, one of the neighboring villages near Castle Town. She didn't think anything of it, but did find it a little strange that the carriage wasn't near the castle. She shrugged it off and kept walking to the castle where the guards were letting visitors in. Instantly, she wanted to know why she wasn't allowed in the past few days, but kept it to herself, not wanting to make a scene as she quietly walked in to the main lobby of the castle, and found Link sitting on the throne.

For a brief second, she could have sworn that Link's eyes looked different. Instead of friendly caring eyes, they were replaced by dark and sinister eyes. She had to take another look at Link to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Maybe Aryll was starting to get to her.

* * *

Link watched everyone come into the lobby, they were all looking at him, but were also chatting amongst themselves. He had spotted Zelda walking in and formed a quick scowl before he hid it from everyone else. Things were looking up, things were starting to go _his _way, and he will rule the kingdom with an iron fist… nothing would stand in his way!

"Your highness." A guard whispered to him.

"What is it?"

"It's time."

"Good. Close the doors and throw out any stragglers."

"As you wish." He nodded and walked off to tell the other guards what Link told him, and then he heard the sound of protesting and screaming.

"NO! I WANT TO SEE HIM BECOME KING!"

"No! This can't be happening! I want to see him! Please! I'm begging you!"

"Sorry, but that's his final wish."

"Yo, that's uncalled for!"

Link let out a chuckle. Fools, if they wanted to come here, they should have come earlier. He noticed a priest walking up to him, holding a royal staff and King Rhoam's crown and robe. _Excellent. _

"Prince Link, do you swear to look after your fellow subjects and do them good? Do you swear to be a benevolent ruler just like your father."

"I do."

"Good." He said and then handed him the items, and then turned to the crowd. "Ladies and gentleman, your new ruler, King Link!"

Link stood up from the throne, taking the crown and put it on his head, and with a deep breath, he smiled. _Victory!_

"My fellow subjects, I will promise to rule this kingdom fairly and to treat you all with respect and dignity! I will be a benevolent ruler just like my own father. I will make my predecessors proud." He declared, to which everyone roared in applause and cheered.

"All hail King Link! All hail King Link!" Everyone chanted.

Everyone but Zelda, that is.

* * *

Zelda looked concerned, looking directly at Link. Something wasn't right. He had promised everything that he was going to do, but something about it just made her uncomfortable. They sounded like empty promises, not to mention Aryll's words continued to pound her mind constantly.

No, Link isn't dangerous… he couldn't be. He's a good person… right?

"Your majesty!" An audience member called out to him. "What are you going to do with your sister that attempted to take your life?"

"She will receive punishment for such treasonous actions, but, I will worry about that tomorrow. We have a grand feast out in the grand hall, so please go ahead and dig in!"

"This king knows how to speak to me. Coming through, I got food calling my name!"

"Don't hog all the turkey legs!"

Zelda herself wasn't hungry, but she stayed there while everyone else cleared out to the grand hall, leaving behind only her and the king that stood before her. "What's a peasant like you doing standing around here? There's food out there!"

"You know how much I hate it when you call me a peasant!"

Link laughed. "Your reactions are always a joy." He chuckled and then walked over to Zelda. "So, how was I? Did I sound convincing?"

"Well, you won everyone over… except the ones who you threw out."

"To be fair, I kinda wanted to hurry things along."

Zelda rolled her eyes. "Oh, you." She said with a chuckle. "So, Link… or in this case, your _highness, _I have to ask you something."

"Can it wait? I'm getting hungry." He said. "Maybe later we can discuss it over dinner tonight."

Zelda's eyes widening, blushing like mad. "Are you… asking me out?"

"Of course!"

"Uh… s-sure! I'd love that!" She said while Link smiled and then walked off while Zelda sighed with relief. Maybe Aryll _was _insane. This sounded exactly like the Link she knew and loved. Dorky as ever.

* * *

_Later__…_

Zelda hummed to herself, grabbing herself some Cucco wings on the table and sitting down at a table while everyone else was lingering around and chatting it up with the king or some of them were on the dance floor with an Ocarina band on stage. She always thought Cucco's were nearly impossible to kill, yet here she was enjoying some delicious Cucco for a meal. Perhaps there was a specialist in the kingdom that knew how to deal with Cuccos without triggering an army of them coming out of nowhere and pecking him or her to death.

However, while she was eating, Zelda noticed some guards walking over to Link and whispering in his ear to which Link went from smiling to having a serious look on his face before he rushed out with the guards. This caught her attention, something didn't seem right.

She got up, and then walked after them, making sure not to be seen by the guards or the king himself. She would be led to the throne room, where she hid behind a pillar.

"Oh sweet Aryll, how nice to see you again."

_Aryll?! _Zelda thought to herself.

"Screw off, brother!" Aryll spat, who was chained to the ground.

"That is no way to talk to your king!" Link yelled, slapping her across the face.

"Nngh! I can talk to you however I want, _MURDERER! _If anyone should be arrested, it's YOU! You killed our parents, not me!"

Link laughed. "While it _is _true that I killed my parents, there is nothing nobody will do and _if _they find out, well, it'll be too late. Nobody can touch me."

Zelda's eyes widened. Did she just actually hear that right? …No… no, she was probably hearing things. Link would _never _do this.

"You're already a maniac! People will riot on the streets and storm the castle!"

"No, they won't. Because I already have plans for the people, and they won't even know what hit them."

Aryll looked to the guards. "Can you believe this guy?! He told the truth! Arrest him! He's unfit to be king!"

"Arrest me, and you die." Link threatened, to which the guards shuddered over this.

"F-forgive us, princess…"

"No!" Aryll exclaimed.

'I already have the guards wrapped under my fingers, there's nothing you can do about it." Link smirked. "Oh, and since everyone knows that you attempted to "kill" me, I know the perfect punishment for you. Effective immediately, all prisoners who had attempted to kill me before I gained the throne… will be _executed.__"_

"WHAT?!" Aryll yelled. "I didn't even kill you! You were the one who killed our parents and you blamed ME for it!"

"So what if I did! Nobody will ever know. Everyone in Castle Town are a bunch of idiots and it will stay that way, and _if _they find out, then so be it! I will be their king no matter what!" He exclaimed, slapping Aryll again. "Guards, give me the axe! I'll do it myself! Nobody will stand in my _WAY!__"_

Zelda couldn't believe her ears. No… this has to be _stopped. _

"STOP!" Zelda screamed, jumping from behind the pillar. "Don't you _dare _lay another finger on sweet Aryll!"

"Zelda!" Link exclaimed in surprise. "…How much have you heard?"

_"__Everything." _Zelda said. "Aryll told me everything, but I didn't want to believe her! You have been acting strange ever since the funeral, and now… you're planning on executing Aryll?" She asked. "Link… tell me the truth. Did you actually kill King Rhoam and the queen?"

Link clenched his fists and looked away from Zelda, not answering a word as Zelda's eyes widened in horror, her hands over her mouth in shock. No… _no, _he couldn't have!

"I-it's true… isn't it?" She whispered, and when Link didn't say anything, tears started to fill up in her eyes. "Link…_how could you?__"_

"It was for the good of everyone."

"For the good of everyone?! Have you lost your mind?!"

"The only one who lost their mind was father and the Triforce! I'm _GLAD _I killed father! He was in my way… and so was mother! Nobody is going to stand in my way and take the throne from me! The Gods are smiling down upon me, that I have taken the throne and will turn this kingdom around for the greater good of Hyrule!"

Zelda's world came crashing down… her own best friend… turning into a maniac right in front of her eyes. She was in absolute shock. "No… I… I can't believe that you would-"

"Now that you have heard everything… I'm afraid that you won't be leaving here." He said and walked up to Zelda who could only back away.

"No… get away! No!" Zelda exclaimed as she tried to run, but Link grabbed her wrist and gripped it tightly. "Nnngh!"

"You're coming with _me.__" _He snarled, and then suddenly, their wrists glowed to reveal their respective Triforce pieces, both of them looking on in shock. "You… you have the Triforce of Courage?"

"Y-you have the Triforce of Power?" Zelda asked. Now it started to make sense to her… perhaps the Triforce of Power was corrupting him… right? "Link, you need to get the Triforce of Power out of you! You've been corrupted!"

"He's been corrupted _before _the Triforce split apart!" Aryll told her. "He's no longer here."

"The Triforce will be _mine.__" _Link said, kicking Zelda down and then grabbing the axe. "I'll make this quick. Once I gain the Triforce of Courage, then all I need is the Triforce of Wisdom, then nothing will truly stand in my way!"

"No! Link… please! Snap out of it! LINK!" She screamed as the guards held Zelda down. "LIIIIINK!" She shrieked as the axe raised up in the air.

Link smirked, sporting wickedness in his smirk and prepared to end Zelda's life. "_Goodbye.__" _He silently chuckled.

Suddenly, several windows were shattered, catching everyone's attention, followed by a smoke bomb that filled the air. "What in blazes?!" A guard yelled.

"Who dares?!" Link asked.

"OOOOF!"

"AARGH!"

Link turned to the source of the voices, his guards sounded like they were getting beat up, and so he quickly swung down to try and impale Zelda.

**CLANG!**

The smoke cleared, and revealed someone with a big sword was standing in the way, blocking Link's attack. She appeared to have a tattoo under her right eye. "Nngh, who are you?!" Link asked.

"Leader of the Sheikah Tribe. None of your concern!" She yelled, slashing the axe away from Link before kicking him away and then two Sheikah tribe members grabbed a hold of Zelda and Aryll, with Zelda noting the two had silver hair, with one looking shorter than the other. "Let's go, we're out of here!"

"Right!" One of them nodded as they took the two away and into a carriage.

"Sire, are you okay!" A guard yelled.

"I'm fine… go after them! Seize them and kill them on the spot if you have to!"

"Right away, sir!"

Zelda and Aryll were put in a carriage with the three Sheikah. "Go!" She told a male Sheikah.

"Yah!" The Sheikah yelled, as the horse took off, pulling with great speed and outpacing everyone that would try to follow them, leaving them in their dust. "Atta girl, Epona! Good job!"

"That was a close one." The leader said, putting down her mask to reveal the rest of her face to reveal a beautiful young woman.

"Who are you?" Zelda asked.

"The name is Impa, and this is my daughter Paya."

"Hello!"

"And this is my older sister, Purah."

"Greetings."

"What… what were you doing there?" Aryll asked.

"We grew suspicious that the king and queen were killed hours apart, and not to mention that you were thrown in jail and Link became king a few days later. We decided to do an investigation, where we heard everything." Impa turned to Zelda. "You have the Triforce of Courage, correct?"

"I do… but I didn't know I had it."

"Good to know." Impa said and took a deep breath. "There is a storm brewing within Hyrule, and we all need to counter it. If what you said is true, young princess, then Link had gone off the deep end _before_ he obtained the Triforce for himself. There's no saving him."

"Oh…" Aryll quietly said. "Where are we going?"

"Kakariko."

"…You're wrong." Zelda said as everyone turned to her. "Link is a good person, and I know that the Triforce of Power is corrupting him. I'm going to bring him back, whatever it takes."

* * *

**The plot thickens! **

**Also, be vigilant, my friends. YouTube, in its infinite wisdom, thinks it's a good idea to shove Avengers Endgame spoilers in my recommended tab. Why are people doing this? This is Infinity War (And let's face it, Smash Ultimate) all over again... and I had to deal with a LOT of spoilers before I saw the actual movie. (Screw you whoever thought that was a good idea!)**

**This is why we can't have nice things. I plan on watching Endgame either tomorrow night or the matinee on Saturday and I WILL not let Endgame spoilers get the best of me! (Unfortunately, I already saw ONE spoiler in the thumbnail and the title because YouTube's algorithm sucks. **

**Stay vigilant my friends! We will battle this monstrosity until we see the movie for ourselves! (And for those who have seen the movie already or have seen the spoilers, for whatever reason, please don't share it in the reviews or PM me about it. Don't be THAT guy.) **


	4. A Dream

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

**To Guest: Dictionary . com would like a word with you. **

* * *

Epona galloped into the village. "Whoa, girl!" The male Sheikah instructed as the majestic horse slowed her pace before coming to a gentle stop near a house.

"We're here." Impa said as they got out of the carriage, as Paya and Purah walked out and then Zelda and Aryll followed suit.

"Do you think we'll be followed?" Aryll asked.

"Nonsense. No one knows where Kakariko truly is. We Sheikah are a crafty bunch." Paya replied with a grin.

"Indeed." Impa nodded. "We have lost the bandits who have tried to stop us." She turned to Epona. "You can thank this horse that we have rescued at Lon Lon Ranch."

"Lon Lon Ranch?" Zelda asked in surprise. "What happened?"

"About a decade ago, Lon Lon Ranch's caretaker was very cruel to the horses, but Epona received the worst treatment. He would physically abuse the animal if it wasn't satisfying him with her work and would beat it constantly. I went over to Lon Lon Ranch to get some Lon Lon Milk when I noticed what he was doing to the poor horse. So, we staged a heist to get Epona out of there. We waited until evening and then we got her out of there."

"How did you know her name was Epona?" Arylll asked.

"Oh, let's just say we heard the man screaming 'Bring Epona back to me this instant, you thieves!'." Purah explained.

"That makes sense." Aryll said. "So, how long are we going to stay in this village?"

"You can stay as long as you like. As far as I'm concerned, this place is your new home. Castle Town is dangerous to live in though, especially with a tyrant like Link in the castle." Impa said and turned to Zelda. "You might think he's corrupted by the Triforce of Power, but you have to realize that he's had an agenda before he saw the Triforce."

"…I know he's a good person. There's no way he'd act like this." Zelda said.

Impa sighed. "You can be in denial all you want, but you will soon have to face reality. Link is _gone.__" _She said.

_I__'__m going to prove you wrong. I'll make sure that Link is a good person no matter what. _She thought.

"I'll show you to your rooms." Paya said as she guided Aryll and Zelda to their rooms. "Like it or not, times are changing, and based on what you saw with Link, things are only going to get worse." She told them and then opened a door. "Princess, you'll be sleeping in here. Zelda, you'll be sleeping across from Aryll." She said and then walked downstairs.

Aryll looked at Zelda. "I know it's hard, Zelda. I thought Link was a nice guy too, until he showed his true colors." She said and turned around. "You can be in denial all you want, but the truth is, he's a Wolfos in sheep's clothing." She said and walked into her room, closing the door behind her.

Zelda silently went into her room, sitting on the bed and looked out the window. She wanted to believe that Link was a good person and the Triforce of Power just went to his head. She put her hand to her heart, and closed her eyes. "Link… I'll save you." She said and then laid on her back, looking at the ceiling in front of her. "I wonder how my family is doing." She wondered to herself before drifting off.

* * *

At Zelda's home, however… things weren't looking so hot.

"What… what are you doing, your majesty?!" Zelda's mother exclaimed, after watching him beat her husband to the ground.

"Where's the girl?!" Link demanded to know. "Where's Zelda?!"

"I don't know! She was with you, wasn't she?"

"No, she was committing treason against me and I will _not _stand by and let her get away with it!"

"T-Treason?" The father groaned, spitting out some blood. "_Our_ Zelda? Don't be so absurd! She would never-"

"Your daughter has an agenda, she was plotting against me from the start. Those who agree with that woman is also a traitor to Hyrule!"

"Okay, pal. I think the paranoia is getting to your head." The father stood up. "I don't know what Zelda said to you, but she would never say something like that. I get the past few days have been tough, but there's no reason to lash out at us like this!"

"Zelda is your best friend! If anything, she'd be supportive!" The mother pointed out.

"HA! She's not supportive at all." He said. "She's a traitor to this kingdom, and anyone who defends her is also a traitor… and must be punished severely."

The father rolled his eyes. "Look, your highness. If this is some lousy stunt that you're doing, I'm not impressed." He walked over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps you need to chill out and relax, you know? It'll be for the best. In fact, my wife made some cookies and-" His eyes widened, having a pained look in his eyes as he looked down and saw Link planting a dagger into his stomach.

_"__Don't touch me, peasant." _He snarled, kicking him down.

"HONEY!" The mother screamed.

"Those who are with the damned girl is seen as treason." Link repeated and turned to the guards. "Search this entire house! Make sure they're harboring the girl." He said as the guards saluted and searched the entire house.

"What is wrong with you?! Zelda would never do something like this!" She shouted, and then Link slapped her.

"Don't you _DARE _mention that wench in my presence!" Link spat and then the guards returned.

"Zelda isn't anywhere, sire. She's not here."

"I see…" Link glared at her. "Where is she?"

"We don't know!"

"You LIE!" Link yelled, slapping her again. "Tell me where she is!"

"I don't have a clue!"

"…Fine, if that's the way you want it." Link said and turned to the guards. "Take this woman to the dungeon. Do not feed her anything. Make her starve. Burn this house to the _ground.__"_

"What about the man?" The guard asked, pointing to the groaning man holding on to his stomach.

"Let him burn. Make him an example."

"Yes sir." The guards saluted and dragged the woman away.

"Y-you… you're a monster." The father groaned. "I don't know where… where my girl is at, but what I do know… is that she'll never approve of you doing this!"

Link sneered at him. "I could care less about her approval." He said, kicking him in the wound as he keeled over and turned around, groaning while a guard threw a torch into the house, landing on the carpet and then the place started to burn. "Place a bounty on Zelda's head." Link told one of the guards. "Send it everywhere throughout the kingdom."

"Yes, your majesty. But what about the house?" He asked, as they heard the man screaming in agony over the flames.

"What _about _the house?" Link asked. "If anyone asks, it'd be an electrical fire and no one got out alive."

"Another question sire. What about your sister?"

Link clenched his fists. "She's as good as dead out there anyway. Zelda is my main concern." He said and walked off.

* * *

_"__Zelda… Zelda!"_

Zelda opened her eyes, finding herself in an open field. "Huh?" She wondered to herself and looked around, not knowing where she was. "Where am I?"

_"__Zelda… come hither…"_

Zelda turned her head to the source of the voice and stood up, walking in that direction out of curiosity. When she got closer, she saw a bright light appear before her, forcing her to shield her eyes from the bright light, before a woman appeared before her. "Who… who are you?" She asked.

_"__I am the goddess Hylia. I am here to send a message on Hyrule's behalf."_

Zelda's eyes widened and then quickly bowed in front of the goddess. "F-forgive me! I had no idea that you were-"

"_There__'__s no need to bow, young one." _Hylia chuckled. _"__Rise."_

Zelda rose to her feet once more, looking at the goddess quizzically. "What do you want to say?"

_"__I am asking you to go find the three magical powers. The power of Din, the power of Nayru, and the power of Farore. When you have all three of them, go to the Lost Woods and retrieve the sacred sword, the Master Sword. It is a sword that evil may never touch, for it is the Blade of Evil's Bane. When you retrieve this, I will instruct you further."_

"Why do you want me to go find these items? Why do you want to send _me?__"_

"_Because Hyrule is in grave danger. Due to your friend__'__s actions, he will make Hyrule a shell of its former self. We have watched Hyrule prosper for millennia, and we are not going to sit by and watch this young man ruin everything. That is why we are asking you for help." _

Zelda smiled a bit. "So you want me to save him?"

_"__Unfortunately, Link has gone off the deep end. He is a lost cause."_

Zelda's smile disappeared. "What?!"

_"__His heart was imbalanced, and split the Triforce into three. He has the Triforce of Power. You have the Triforce of Courage. Another has the Triforce of Wisdom. You may think that the Triforce of Power has corrupted his mind, but he has had an agenda even before he took his test. He desired the fame and glory, wanting nothing more than for his own personal gain. Aryll would be a better ruler than Link, for she has the wisdom and skills to rule the kingdom under her watch. Link is not the friend you know at all."_

"No…" Zelda couldn't believe her ears. The gods believe Link is a lost cause? Link having an agenda? This didn't make sense to her… no, he couldn't be! Hylia _had _to be lying!

_"__You may think that I am lying, and that is understandable. You and Link have been best friends for years, but it is time for you to know the truth. There is more to him than meets the eye."_

"I'm going to save him!" Zelda exclaimed.

_"__If you're going to save anyone, save Hyrule. Link is no longer here." _Hylia gave her a solemn look. _"__There will be a time where you and Link will have to fight. It will be hard, but you must prevail." _It was then that Hylia started to slowly disappear. _"__Have courage, Zelda. You will be the one to save Hyrule."_

"Where do I have to go? Where are these powers anyway?"

_"__Go to Lake Hylia and follow a river. It will lead you to Zora's Fountain. There, you will find the Power of Nayru. Have courage, Zelda. Hyrule's time is running out." _

With that, Hylia disappeared.

* * *

An intrusive sunbeam hit Zelda in the eyes, making her wake up and she sat up. "Mmm… what kind of dream was that?" She wondered as she sat up, Hylia's words echoing in her head as she opened up the window and looked outside to see a few Sheikah children playing in some grass while a Cucco walked by them.

Zelda walked down the stairs and saw Impa meditating. "You've finally woken up." She said.

"Was I out for that long?" Zelda asked.

"Last night was a very interesting night. I wouldn't blame you for sleeping in." Impa replied and then saw the perplexed look on Zelda's eyes. "Something on your mind?"

"Yeah."

"Sit down, I'll get you some tea." She said as she stood up and walked to her kitchen, pouring some tea for the two of them and then she returned. "Alright, speak. Tell me what's troubling you."

"Well, I had this dream last night… I was speaking with Hylia."

"Hmm?" Impa raised an eyebrow. "Do tell." She requested as Zelda recounted the whole dream she had to Impa, to which the Sheikah put her cup down, folding her arms and closed her eyes deep in thought. "I see…"

"Yeah, I'm not really sure what that's all about."

"It means that the goddesses have found favor in you, Zelda." Impa replied. "If what Hylia said was correct, that means that Hyrule is in more serious danger than I thought. Did she instruct you on anything else?"

"No, she said she'll give me more instructions when I get the Master Sword."

"Interesting. You have quite the journey ahead of you." She mused. "You must heed Hylia's council. She is very wise… and if she's concerned about Hyrule's safety thanks to Link's actions, then you must hurry before he does any irreparable damage. Where did Hylia say you have to go first?"

"Zora's Fountain."

"I see. Then you must go. However, I suggest you prepare yourself before you go on this journey. Our scouts have said there have been a lot of Bokoblin and Moblin activity recently, and they also believe they may have seen a Lynel. It's best to be prepared than go in ill prepared."

"I… don't really know what to do." Zelda explained. "I don't even have a weapon."

Impa smiled. "Never fear. Purah will help you out with that. Now… about your clothes. They don't seem very… _adventurous.__" _She said. "Go to Purah's lab then come back, Paya and I will have made you an outfit by then."

"If you say so." Zelda nodded. "Where is Purah's lab, exactly?"

"Go up the hill and turn left, her lab is hard to miss."

"Okay. Thanks Impa." Zelda smiled and then walked up to Purah's lab, where she knocked on the door a few minutes later.

"Coming!" Purah's voice said and then opened the door. "Oh hi, Zelda! Impa just called me. Come in!" She requested and then Zelda walked in to find Purah's lab an actual mess. "Don't mind the mess, it's just science in action!"

"I see." Zelda said and then Purah walked over to a pedestal and pulled off a tablet.

"Ta-dah! It's the Sheikah Slate 2.0!"

"2.0?" Zelda tilted her head. "Was there a first edition?"

"Yes, there was!"

"What happened to it?"

"Uh… eheheh…" Purah twiddled her fingers together. "Leeeeet's just say Lynels do _not _like to have their picture taken." She said nervously, causing Zelda to sweatdrop.

"Uuuuh, okay then, I'm not even going to ask. What does this do?"

"Oh, it takes pictures, has an album, has a radar function, and it has runes! It even has a map!"

"Runes?"

"Yes. Magnesis, Remote Bombs, Stasis, Cryonis… _Anti-Aging...__" _She quietly mumbled that last part.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Purah quickly replied. "Magnesis lets you manipulate metal objects. Remote Bombs lets you summon either a round or a cube bomb, and you can remote detonate them. Stasis lets you stop the flow of time on an object, but I must warn you, the bigger the object, the less time they'll stay frozen. Cryonis lets you create a pillar of ice on water."

"Sweet!" Zelda said and noticed something. "What's… Ah-mee-boh?"

"Oh that? Don't worry about it. It's just a dud."

"Also, what's a Master Cycle?"

"That _would _let you summon a bike, but I'm still working on the tech because the last Sheikah Slate was destroyed and I didn't save the coding for Master Cycle." Purah sighed. "Science is a blessing and a curse."

"If you say so." Zelda said and then strapped it to her pocket.

"Oh! And before you go. There's something else that I want to give you." She said and then walked to a wall and grabbed a weapon. "Here's a rapier! I think this fits you."

"Um, thank you?" Zelda took it, not sure what to do with the rapier but sheathed it. "I'll just be on my way."

"Alright, take care!" Purah waved as Zelda walked out the door. "…I wonder if she knows how to fight with a weapon? …Eh, I'm sure she'll be fine."

Zelda came back to Impa's house where Paya and Impa were waiting for her. "There you are! Here's some new clothes for you to try on." Paya said as Zelda went to her room to get changed, and then she came out wearing a green tunic that had a hoodie, and some black leggings.

"Um… is there a way to change the color? Green's not _exactly _my color."

"Oh, that's fine." Paya said, pulling out a box full of spray paint. "What would you say is your color?"

"Oh, I'm rather fond of light blue and purple."

"A mixture, eh? Perfect." Paya quickly strapped on some gloves and a face mask for Zelda. "Hold still!" She said and quickly sprayed her down until the green tunic was now a light blue color with some purple on the sleeves. "There ya go!" She said, taking off the mask and gloves.

"Oooh, this is nice. Thank you!" Zelda beamed.

"Epona is waiting for you, Zelda." Impa told her.

"You're trusting me with Epona?"

"She's a very mild mannered horse. It might take a bit for her to trust you, but once she does, she's very loyal." Paya said as Zelda gave her a quick nod and walked out, seeing Epona grazing on some grass.

"Hey Epona." Zelda said gently, catching the horse's attention and having a wary look on her eyes. "Easy now. I come in peace." She said, gently raising her hand to touch Epona's head, gently rubbing her head as Epona neighed gently, seeming to like it. "Something tells me you don't trust people easily after being abused. I don't blame you." She whispered and then climbed onto her. "Alright, I'm off to Zora's Fountain! Yah!" She ordered, as Epona galloped off.

"Take care! Stay safe!" Paya waved.

"I wonder if Zelda knows how to fight with a weapon." Impa mused.

"Hmm, I think she'll be fine." Paya said and walked off.

"Here's hoping you're right."

* * *

**I was originally going to have Zelda go get the power of Din first, because fire bias, but then I thought "Why not have her go to Zora's Fountain instead?" and so, she's off to meet the Zora's!**

**Also, normally I'm not surprised with my work given the fact that i'm writing stories and I know what will happen, and yet... i'm continually surprising myself when I'm writing _this _story. Geez... who knew? **


	5. Zora's Fountain

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Epona galloped into Hyrule Field, where Zelda held on to her reigns. "Whoa!" Zelda ordered as Epona slowed down. "Alright, now where's Lake Hylia?" She asked herself as she pulled up the map on the Sheikah Slate. "Okay, so I'm here, and Lake Hylia is just a few miles from here." She quietly said. "Follow the river to… aha! Okay, there's Zora's Fountain. That looks easy enough. Yah!"

Epona started gaining speed once again when all of a sudden, Zelda heard neighing in the distance as she turned to see some Bokoblins riding on horses chasing after them. "Wait, Bokoblins are smart enough to ride horses? I thought they were all stupid." She said. _Just ignore them._

However, one of the Bokoblins swung a sling around and threw a rock at her, hitting Zelda on the back of the neck. "OW!" She yelled as another rock was thrown, hitting her in the side and knocked her off of Epona, making her roll a few feet. "Ow…" She groaned as she slowly got up as the Bokoblins hopped off of the horses and aimed their spears at her. "You have some nerve." She said as she unsheathed her rapier. "Who attacks a girl when they're going around Hyrule Field? You blasted savages… I'll make you regret this!"

She got into a position. "TAKE THIS! AND THIS! THIS! THAT! AND THIS!" She screamed, swinging her rapier at the two of them, but the two Bokoblins didn't budge, watching her flail about, swinging the rapier randomly, attacking the hair and her eyes closed. She was attacking them as if a headless Cucco were running around, and the Bokoblins looked at her, both of them shrugged and they went around her.

Zelda opened her eyes. "Did I get them?" She asked and then grinned. "Heh, I showed them!"

It was then she got poked on the shoulder and then turned around, only to get backhanded by a Bokoblin. "OOOF!" She grunted and was knocked to the ground. The Bokoblins laughed and tried to poke her with their spears, but they quickly rolled out of the way and got back up. "Alright, now you made me mad!" She growled.

_"__Yah! Yah!"_

"Huh?" Zelda wondered as she turned her head along with the Bokoblins to see a knight coming toward them on a horse. "Is that a… knight?" She wondered.

The Bokoblins looked at each other and then got ready to throw rocks at him, but before they could start throwing rocks at them, the knight's horse already ran them over. "Whooooa!" He said, and then jumped off of the horse and stabbed the Bokoblins before they could get up. "Stay down!" He ordered and then turned to Zelda. "M'lady, the Bokoblins are slain." He said with a bow.

"I could have handled it." Zelda said. "But thank you, sir knight."

"Oh… uh… I'm not _actually _a knight."

"So you're a warlock?"

"No."

"A creepy salesman that sells really weird masks?"

"No."

"Some guy dressing up as a bunny?"

"No. Who would do something like that?"

"…Then what are you?"

"Well, you see, I've been training to become a knight to be part of the king's royal guard, but they rejected me because they think I'm some bumbling fool."

"So, why are you still dressed as a knight?"

"Well, one… to prove myself, and two… I'm kinda stuck in here."

"You can't get out?"

"No. Not really." The knight sighed.

"Well, if you must know, I'm off on a quest to save Hyrule."

"Save Hyrule? What, is there some kind of famine going on?"

"No… I'm going to save Hyrule by powering myself up and getting rid of the king." Zelda said.

"Whoa whoa whoa, why are you getting rid of King Rhoam? He's a pretty chill guy! …Until he rejected me."

"You… don't go to Castle Town often, do you?"

"Nope. Why do you ask?"

Zelda sighed. "It's kind of sad." She said and then explained it all to the knight.

"WHAAAAAAAAT?! …You're joking."

"I wish." Zelda quietly said. "I don't want to believe it, but… this is reality."

"Reality is a tough pill to swallow." The knight nodded. "This friend of yours sounds like a piece of work."

"Unfortunately." Zelda sighed. "Anyway, I'm heading off to Zora's Fountain."

"The Zoras, eh? Mind if I come along with you? Strength in numbers, as I like to say!"

Zelda rolled her eyes. "Sure." She nodded and then hopped back up on Epona as the knight got on his horse. "Do you have a name?"

"I will reveal my name once I get this blasted armor off." The knight replied. "What's your name?"

"Zelda."

"Oooh, that's a pretty name. You know, they could name a book after you. Perhaps turn your name into a legend. Oooh, perhaps that could be the name of a princess! The Legend of Zelda! Nice ring to it, no?"

"…I don't think that'll catch on." Zelda said and then galloped off with Epona.

"Oh, it will! Just give it time." The knight chuckled and then went off with her until they reached the side of a cliff near the lake and the waterfall.

"Oh come on, the map doesn't say anything about a cliffside." Zelda said. "I guess we'll have to wing it."

"Rock climbing? This is my specialty." The knight grinned as he started climbing while Zelda looked through her runes.

"Let's see… ah, Cryonis." She said and then aimed it at the water, where a pillar of ice emerged in front of her. "Oh, so that's how it works." She said and hopped onto the ice pillar, where the knight noticed this.

"Couldn't you have done that sooner?" He asked, and then hopped down and joined Zelda, where Zelda decided to make some stairs with the ice pillars, climbing up until they got to the top of the waterfall and walked a few feet before turning around to get a better view of Lake Hylia.

"It's beautiful." She smiled.

"It sure is." The knight agreed. "I could get used to a view like this."

"We shouldn't stay here for long. We need to move." She told him and then walked off.

"Hey wait up!" The knight went after her, while Epona and the horse ran off to find a way around and meet up with Zelda and the knight.

Zelda spotted a path up ahead and then went along the trail, following the river upstream, when a Lizalfos popped out of the water and roared at her. "Ack!" Zelda yelped and unsheathed her rapier. "Have at you!" She said, only for the Lizalfos to grab the rapier with its tongue and pulled it out of her hands. "Hey!"

"I got this!" The knight exclaimed as he charged at the Lizalfos and slashed him, but clashed with the rapier that it stole, then he parried to knock the rapier off of it and then slashed it repeatedly to kill it. "Too easy." He said as he grabbed the rapier and tossed it to Zelda. "So, have you ever fought with a weapon before?"

"I've seen Link practice with a sword, he made it look easy." Zelda explained.

"But have you ever _used _one before?"

"Um… no."

The knight sweatdropped. "Oh boy… then I guess it'll be my job to be your bodyguard until you can take care of yourself."

"What! I can take care of myself just fine, thank you very much!"

"Your rapier got stolen by a Lizalfos, not to mention you were having trouble with two Bokoblins."

Zelda sighed. "You… have a good point." She said as she walked along the trail with the knight right by her side, chatting things up with one another until it started to rain, where Zelda put up her hoodie to keep her hair dry.

"Ahoy there!" A voice called out as they turned to see a male Zora running up to them. "What are you two doing here?"

_H-holy__… __hot! _Zelda thought. "Wh-what do they call you?"

"I am Sidon, I am here on lookout." He said. "What is a pretty Hylian and a knight doing out here?"

"We're here on a quest." Zelda explained. "We are headed over to Zora's Fountain in order to get the Power of Nayru."

Sidon's eyes widened. "The Power of Nayru? Then the prophecy is about to be fulfilled…" He muttered.

"Prophecy?" Zelda tilted her head.

"Don't worry about it." Sidon replied. "Come on, I will show you the way to Zora's fountain." He said, giving them a thumbs up and flashed a smile, complete with a random shiny flash in his teeth.

"…How'd he do that?" The knight wondered.

"Oh, you saw it too?" Zelda asked and then Sidon went up ahead with Zelda and the knight quickening their pace as a few Octorocks tried to spit rocks at them, but Sidon knocked them out by karate chopping the back of their nonexistent necks.

"See Zelda? _He _doesn't have any weapons and he can knock out enemies." The knight teased.

"I'm not gonna hear the end of this." Zelda sighed as they walked along the path and a few minutes later, they saw a grand city in front of them. "Whoa…" She whispered in awe.

"So _this _is Zora's Fountain? It's more beautiful than I imagined it." The knight said as they followed Sidon along the pathway until they reached the city, where several Zoras saw the duo in awe, where some kids did some friendly waves until they reached the top of the fountain, where a benevolent ruler was watching over them.

"Sidon, what is a Hylian and a knight doing in Zora's Fountain?" The princess asked.

"Princess Mipha, these two are on a quest." Sidon said with a bow.

"A quest?" Mipha sounded intrigued. "What kind of quest?"

"A quest to save the entirety of Hyrule!" The knight spoke.

"Oh?" Mipha tilted her head. "Please elaborate."

"Let me speak for him, your majesty." Zelda spoke up before the knight could say anything.

"Okay. Speak, miss-"

"Zelda."

"Go ahead, Miss Zelda." Mipha encouraged.

Zelda rose to her feet. "I am on a quest to save Hyrule. I had this dream from Hylia that I needed to go on a quest and save Hyrule before it falls into darkness."

"Darkness?" An elderly Zora thought. "Pah! What nonsense. There hasn't been darkness in Hyrule for nearly a millennia! Why do the goddesses call out to you?"

"Muzu, please." Mipha softly chided. "Continue."

"You may have not realized this, but do you know who is the king of Hyrule?"

"Why yes, King Rhoam."

"King Rhoam was killed, and so was his wife."

"What?! Who would do such a thing?" Mipha asked.

"Their son, Link. He took the Triforce in rage and split it apart, and in his anger, he killed his family and nearly killed me and his sister. Last night, Hylia came to me in a dream and wanted me to do something before it is too late. And so, I'm on a quest, seeking the powers from the Goddesses."

"And why should we believe you?" Muzu asked.

"Because I have this." Zelda said, turning her hand to them and the Triforce of Courage appeared.

Muzu gasped, nearly collapsing. "The-The Triforce?!"

"So it is true…" Mipha quietly said. "Hyrule is in jeopardy." She looked directly at Zelda. "I had received a premonition in my sleep just a few days ago. I saw Hyrule in ruins and covered in darkness, and then I saw Zora's Fountain unrecognizable. I thought nothing of it, thinking it was just a nightmare. But now that I'm seeing the Triforce in front of me, then it's only a matter of time before it comes to pass." She quietly said. "Tell me, what do you seek?"

"The Power of Nayru."

Mipha got off of the throne. "Follow me." She said as they walked over to a pathway near the throne, then pointed up to the mountains. "The entrance to the Water Temple is up there, that is where the power of Nayru rests. You will need a guide there. Someone who's been up there before." Mipha then looked down to the water below and sang a melody, as a geyser of water shot out and then a blue Zora hopped out of the water.

"Whoa, she's cute." The knight said, only to get elbowed by Zelda. "Ow! What'd I say?"

"Hello, princess. Need anything?" The Zora asked.

"Ruto, I want you to take these two to the Water Temple. Zelda here is looking for the Power of Nayru."

Ruto nodded, bowing. "It will be done, princess." She said and then turned to the two. "Follow me." She requested as Zelda and the knight followed her up the mountain.

"Good luck, brave heroes." Mipha said.

Ruto guided them up the mountain and then got to the summit. "Hold." She ordered.

"What's wrong?" The knight asked.

Ruto said nothing, pointing to a Lynel walking about. "That." She whispered.

"Hoo… that's a biiiiig Lynel." The knight shuddered.

"So what do we do, attack it?" Zelda asked.

"No, we distract it." Ruto said. "Do you have anything on you?"

Zelda pulled out her Sheikah Slate and summoned a remote Cube Bomb. "As a matter of fact… I do."

"Good, use that." Ruto said as they quickly hid behind a huge rock, with the Lynel unaware of them nearby. "Okay, throw it." Ruto said as Zelda threw it near a tree where it made a little 'clunk' noise, catching the attention of the Lynel and going to the source of the noise, and when he disappeared from behind the rock, they quickly slid behind the rock, with Ruto peeking her head out to see the Lynel examine the Remote Bomb out of curiosity. "Okay, go go go go!"

Zelda, the Knight and Ruto quickly ran toward the trail, hiding behind another rock as the Lynel turned around before shrugging it off and picked up the curious thing that hit its tree. Ruto motioned them to follow her as they went up the trail, Zelda praying that the clanging metal from the knight wouldn't alert the Lynel, but the creature was too interested in the bomb.

"Okay, here's the temple." Ruto said once they got to the top.

Zelda looked at the temple before her, and with a deep breath, she looked determined. "Let's go in." She said and walked straight into the temple, with the Knight and Ruto accompanying her.

* * *

**This would've been up a few days ago, like after the Mario Maker Direct, but I was too busy going "Let's see, what do I want to do with this chapter..." Ah well... but how about that Direct though? It was amazing! I wonder what the other extra game mode would be? Super Mario Bros 2? Galaxy? Odyssey? Mario 64? The possibilities are endless. (I did see a comment suggesting Paper Mario though...) What did YOU think of the direct? I thought it was awesome!**

**Anyway, you're probably wondering who the knight could be. Well, i've set up a poll to have you guess who it could be! The knight will be revealed in the next chapter, so have fun!**


	6. Water Temple

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda wandered inside, her hand close to her rapier as she walked down a corridor, then came across a door as she opened it up and looked around, seeing a few waterfalls hitting the water near her, as a few Tektites were wandering around, minding their own business and not paying attention to the woman that entered their temple. A few Keese flew around but paid no attention to Zelda. She looked down into the water and saw seaweed gently floating on the ground near the crystal walls.

_Crystal? _Zelda wondered to herself and then turned her head as Ruto and the knight approached her.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Ruto smiled. "The crystals on the walls make the place look beautiful."

"I agree. It's so pretty." The knight agreed.

"Indeed." Zelda nodded and then walked around to see if there were any doors that she could go inside, as she had found a locked door nearby but there were no keys for here to get, so she took a deep breath and dove right into the water with Ruto and the Knight jumping in after her as she found an opening that she could swim into and went into it, as she looked behind to see the knight, despite wearing metal armor, swimming at a good pace behind her.

"You sure know how to swim well in that heavy armor." Ruto said.

"Blub blub blub-"

Ruto laughed a little. "Save your breath for when we reach an air pocket."

_Wish I was a Zora__… __I wouldn't have to worry about holding my breath. _Zelda thought as she noticed the ground was tilting upward, so she swam up and surfaced, climbing out of the water and wrung her hair to get the water out of it and then Ruto and the knight emerged.

"So, you were saying?"

"Yes, I was saying that I'm a great swimmer and nothing will hold me back." He replied as Zelda noticed some vines that she had to climb and then climbed up, only to be greeted by a Skulltula that fell from the ceiling.

"AAACK!" Zelda yelped, jumping a bit and nearly falling off the ledge before regaining her balance, then put her hand over her heart and sighed, then glared at the Skulltula who she could've sworn it was laughing at her. "Oh, you think it's funny, huh?" She asked as she grabbed the Skulltula and turned it around to expose its soft belly, then she unsheathed the rapier and impaled the Skulltula to kill it before putting it away.

"Strange, Skulltula's are a rare sight in this temple." Ruto mused as Zelda sheathed the rapier and then went to the treasure chest and opened it up, revealing a key.

"Really? All of that for a _key?__" _Zelda wondered. "Who puts a key in a chest?"

"Probably a sick twisted fellow." The knight said and then turned to Ruto.

"What? It wasn't my idea!" Ruto defended and then they went back, where they got out of the water and unlocked the door, and then when they walked through the door, they saw crystal walls and then saw the only way through is through a small pool of water as Zelda dove in and went through a series of tight corridors and some Spikes and Shell Blades were in the way, but Ruto was near Zelda and took care of the enemies in front of her, and then they kept swimming, finding some air pockets along the way before they reached a spacious room.

_It looks like an underwater city. _Zelda thought and then went up to get some air along with the knight as they climbed up on a small platform.

"It's beautiful down there." The knight said.

"Indeed. This used to be a Zora sanctuary a thousand years ago, but a massive earthquake destroyed the civilization, leaving nothing but ancient ruins you see here." Ruto explained.

"Oh… that's terrible." Zelda solemnly said. _Is this what will happen if Link brings Hyrule down to ruin? __…__No, he would never. _She thought as she dove right back in and found a few treasure chests in the ruins , finding a few Rupees inside the chests. She then saw a small tunnel and swam through it, luckily finding some air pockets inside and then swam up to the surface where she found glittery walls full of crystal and saw a door up ahead.

"Where does this lead?" The knight wondered and then they walked inside to discover a life leading inside a waterfall.

"You guys can take the lift, I'll take the waterfall." Ruto said and then swam up the waterfall with ease.

"They make it look so easy." Zelda shook her head as they entered the lift and the knight pulled the lever, where it lifted up and went for the waterfall. "So… I have a question."

"What is it?" The knight asked.

"Is it true that you can't take off the armor?"

"Sadly, no, I had to squeeze my body into it, unfortunately."

"Hmm, maybe I can help." She said, reaching for the helmet and tried to lift it off.

"Ow… ow… OW! Watch it, you're gonna pull my head off!"

Zelda stopped herself. "Yup, that's really stuck on there. What'd you do, lathered yourself in butter and put yourself in it?"

The knight twiddled his fingers. "Um… they didn't have one my size, so I went for the next size down…"

"You didn't answer my question."

"Maybe…" He said sheepishly.

Zelda let out a small laugh. "Well, I suppose we'll find a way to get you out of there." She said and then had an idea. "Say, perhaps I can use Magnesis from my Sheikah Slate and throw you to a wall."

"Are you trying to kill me?!"

Zelda laughed. "I'm just teasing, I'd never do that to you!"

"Phew… good, because I'm pretty sure that wouldn't work."

The lift stopped as they walked toward a door while Ruto was waiting for them. "What took ya so long?" She teased.

"We're not Zoras." Zelda deadpanned as they opened up the door to find an empty room. "Dead end?"

"No, I think there's more than meets the eye here." The knight mused as they wandered further into the room when a small crystal golem landed on the ground. "Like that thing right there!"

Zelda unsheathed her rapier, looking at the Crystal Golem as it roared and jumped into the air, throwing rock like missiles at them, but they rolled over and dodged the attack as the knight brought out his sword. "Yaaah!" He exclaimed and then slashed at the golem, only for the sword to bounce off of it. "…Uh oh." He said as he rolled out of the way of an attack, and then the golem was trapped in a water bubble conjured up by Ruto as water suddenly shot out from the ground and impaled the golem before she threw it to the side, as Zelda heard it groaning in pain.

_If weapons won__'__t hurt it, but water will… do we let Ruto take care of it? _She wondered and then had an idea, pulling out her Sheikah Slate and summoned a Round Remote Bomb as she quickly tossed it to the golem as it threw a rock at Ruto, and when the bomb hit the golem, she pressed the button and it blew up, knocking the golem straight to a wall.

"Nice one!" Ruto praised as she conjured up a water javelin and threw it at the Crystal Golem, hitting it dead center as it then got up and fired crystals at the trio, where they quickly avoided the crystals but the knight got pelted by the crystals, although since he was wearing armor, it didn't hurt as much.

"Come on! Is that the best you got!" The knight challenged as Zelda snuck by while Ruto threw water spears at the golem, and then Zelda summoned a Cube Bomb and threw it at the Golem as it was busy with the knight and Ruto, then she activated the bomb, where it exploded and sent the Crystal Golem's body flying into separate pieces and some of the body parts rolled to a stop.

"Did we get it?" Zelda asked, and then a treasure chest appeared out of thin air.

"I think we did!" The knight grinned as Zelda walked to the chest and opened it up, pulling out a Clawshot.

"Curious…" Zelda mused as she put it away.

"Might be useful for later." Ruto pointed out as Zelda scanned the room to see if she could use the Clawshot for anything, but she didn't find anything as they went back, backtracking a little ways until they went back to the ruins as Zelda noticed a switch that she didn't notice before as she swam toward it, then thought of using the Clawshot as she used it and then pulled it back, where a tunnel entrance opened up near a crystal wall.

_Interesting! _She thought.

"Huh… I never knew that was there!" Ruto said as they swam through the tunnel, making sure to be careful of the Shell Blades on the ground, but they swam through, going into various air pockets for air if needed and then Zelda swam to the right where a current suddenly caught her.

"Mmph! MMMPH!" Zelda nearly screamed, where it took her for a wild ride before she fell over a large waterfall and landed in a large pool of water, where the knight and Ruto landed near her shortly afterward, then she surfaced, gasping for air.

"Zelda! Are you okay?" The knight asked.

"Y-yeah… just knocked me for a loop." She said.

"I never knew a current was in the temple. This is really interesting!" Ruto mused, then they climbed out of the water and saw a larger treasure chest near them as Zelda opened it to reveal a Boss Key.

"What the…? All of that nonsense for a bigger key?" Zelda wondered and then they walked up ahead when they noticed a locked door, perfect fit for the Boss Key as Zelda unlocked it and then the trio walked in, where they hopped along a few rocks on the water before the rocks disappeared and then suddenly the room filled with water before a large Crystal-like Fish popped out of a hole in the wall, and then the side of the platform that the trio was on rose up several feet while the other side rose with water until the water flow stopped, and then the Crystal Fish roared, revealing that it had Piranha-like teeth and was the size of a boulder, its scales were a rainbow-like color, its fins were decked out in ruby and sapphire, the tail was a long club, and its eyes were a dark orange color.

"Look alive!" Ruto exclaimed as Zelda and the knight brought out their weapons as the Crystal Fish roared again and dove in the water, before breaching and firing crystal from it's side, where they avoided the attacks and then the platform they were on sunk, being level with the creature and giving the Crystal Fish enough room to try and tackle Zelda, but she rolled out of the way as it rammed into a wall, stunning it for a few seconds.

Zelda, on instinct, quickly used the Clawshot and then flipped the fish over, revealing it's soft underbelly. "The underbelly!" Zelda called.

"I see it!" The Knight said and ran toward it with the two backing him up and laying it on the Crystal Fish, until it flipped over and shook its body out of its daze and went back into the water as the Crystal Fish repeated its attack patterns as it did before, and then when it hit the side of the platform to lower it, it lunged directly at the knight, but he jumped out of the way in time. "Ha! Missed me!" He exclaimed, but the fish stopped and then turned around, lunging directly at the knight where he dodged again, and then the Crystal Fish went back into the water, only to come back out and to body slam the knight, but he rolled out of the way.

"You're a bit slow!" He taunted, only for the fish to growl and then flipped around, quickly using its club to smack the knight straight to a wall. "AGH!" He cried and them slammed into it. "OOOF!"

"SIR KNIGHT!" Zelda yelled as the knight fell on one knee, and then the Crystal Fish rammed into him, which, thanks to the brunt force, the armor fell apart while the Crystal Fish swam off, revealing a young man. "Are you okay?"

"Nngh…" The man groaned as he realized his armor fell off from the brunt force. "Well, what do you know…" He said with a smirk and then looked at the Crystal Fish coming in for the kill. "YOU CAN'T KILL… THE GROOSINATOR!" He yelled, grabbing the fish by the mouth as it looked at him in surprise as he flipped it over on its side with his bare hands and then grabbed his sword. "Zelda! Flip this thing over!"

"Right!" She nodded and used her Clawshot to flip it on its underbelly as the man jumped on its stomach and then impaled its stomach before slicing it open as it roared in agony before its eyes rolled up and then disappeared.

"Yeah, that's right! You can't stop us!" He cheered.

Zelda looked at the man. "So, your name is… Groosinator?"

The man smiled. "Yup, my friends call me Groose, though." He said.

Zelda smiled. "Charming." She said with a giggle and then noticed a blue crystal appearing near them. "Hmm?" She wondered as she walked over to the crystal and touched it with her hand, and in a flash, it absorbed into her skin and then a powerful blue shield surrounded Zelda before disappearing.

_"__You have gained the power of Nayru, Nayru's Love. This will protect you from harm for a short time. Go to Death Mountain, where the Power of Din awaits."_

"I won't let you down." Zelda whispered and then noticed two heart containers as she and Groose picked it up and they absorbed it, where they both felt some strength growing in them, and then a portal appeared.

"Well now, shall we go?" Ruto asked as the duo nodded and then they walked into the portal, where they reappeared in front of the throne at the fountain.

"Oh!" Mipha exclaimed as they returned. "I assume you have taken the Power of Nayru?" She asked.

"I have." Zelda nodded. "But, now I've been called to Death Mountain."

"I see… it's a shame that you have to leave us." She said as Mipha stood up and then gave Zelda a hug. "Be safe." She whispered.

"I will." Zelda nodded, hugging her in return as they parted and then Zelda walked off, but realized that she was alone. "…Hey, Groose."

"Yeah?"

Zelda turned to him. "You coming or what? I could use my knight to protect me in battle." She said, giving him a wink.

Groose blushed a bit before nodding. "I will do my best, Zelda!" He saluted as he ran up to her and the two of them set off to Death Mountain together.

* * *

**Judging by the poll results, I have a feeling I unintentionally made it too obvious on who was the knight. Whoops. **

**I originally was going to copy/paste the Water Temple from Ocarina of Time and have the boss be Morpha, but I thought "Nah, let's do something original. It'll be fun!" Ta-daaaah!**

**Also, Sakurai. Buddy. When we said "take a vacation", we didn't mean go on vacation and _take your work with you! _Geez, dude!**


	7. Death Mountain

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

**To Guest: Eh... probably _not, _but I just wanted to add a fun little touch to it, y'know?**

* * *

Link walked over to a building, surrounded by a few guards. He opened the door to find a man tinkering with some gadgets. "Hello there." Link greeted.

"Oh, hello your majesty!" Gondo greeted. "What can we do for you?"

"I would like a weapon that would easily be able to track down a few people for me."

"Oh, we don't have weapons here. Just gadgets." Gondo said.

"Technically, we have some arrows!" Robbie pointed out and then pulled out an arrow. "Introduciiiiing, the Ancient Arrow! Anyone hit by this will be eradicated in seconds! Perfect for those stinkin' Bokoblins messing up our gardens."

"I have no use for arrows." Link said. "I need something that could walk and fire something that could set a forest on fire!"

"My my, never knew our king would be a pyromaniac! You'll do well in our kingdom." Robbie chuckled. "Anyway, we do have only one thing."

"And that would be?"

"Step outside." He requested as he and Link walked out and saw a mechanical beast that had six legs and a pillar for a body. It was scanning the area. "You see this? We call it a Guardian. It protects us in case some pesky Bokoblins come back with backup. Moblins, Lizalfos, Lynels, nothing can slow this bad boy down!" He said and whistled, catching its attention as it walked over to them, where Link could see its one eye, and noticed that it was scanning him.

"Fascinating…" Link mused, while Link's two guards were quivering in fear. Something about this big guy scared the living daylights out of them. "What does it do?"

"It locks on to its target and fires a laser that can most likely kill anyone in its path!" Robbie said.

"Interesting… _veeeeery _interesting." Link rubbed his chin in thought. "Mind if I take it for a spin?"

"Go right ahead!"

"I'll be back with it by tonight."

"Alright, take care, your highness!" He said as Link whistled to get the Guardian's attention as he urged the big guy to follow him, as it did while the guards walked with the two, though they kept their distance over the big guy.

Robbie chuckled. "What a guy. He's the best king we have!"

"Why do I have this feeling that's gonna bite us in the butt?" Gondo asked.

"Nonsense! He'll be back with it by tonight!" He said and then noticed that his son and wife walked in. "Oh hello, honey!"

"Hello, sweetie! Where's the Guardian?" Jerrin asked.

"His royal majesty is out taking it for a spin. Something about tracking down a few people."

"Hope he comes back with it. I'm not losing my tomato plants to those stinkin' Bokoblins!"

While the family was chatting amongst themselves, Gondo, with his work done for the day, he walked out of the Tech Lab and looked off into the distance. "Something doesn't feel right. Why do I have this feeling Robbie just made a huge mistake?" He wondered as he wandered back to his home.

* * *

_With Link__…_

Link chuckled darkly as he was closing in on the castle. "We're going to see what makes you tick… and see if we can't make _more _of you." He smirked. "Zelda, Aryll, your days are _numbered.__"_

* * *

_With Zelda and Groose__…_

"Achoo!" Zelda sneezed as they got back on their horses.

"You okay?" Groose asked.

"Yeah, probably just some pollen that got into my nose." Zelda chuckled as they wandered around. "Alright, let's see… where in the best possible route for Death Mountain?" She asked as she was looking through her Sheikah Slate. "Ah, he we go, just need to follow this trail toward Death Mountain."

"So Hylia thought it'd be a good idea to go to a volcano for the second power?"

"Pretty much." Zelda nodded. "I don't think there's anything to worry about though. Death Mountain's been dormant for years."

"I dunno, I think I heard recently that it's currently erupting." Groose said as they saw Death Mountain in the distance. "Yup, I'm seeing steam coming out of it."

"Oh, I'm sure it won't be that bad." Zelda said as they kept at a brisk pace toward Death Mountain, both of them chatting to pass the time as they then came across a small village.

"Oooh, I think I smell something good." Groose said.

"I think it's coming from that pub over there." Zelda replied as her stomach started grumbling. "Well, I suppose we can stop and get something to eat."

"Can't go on an adventure on an empty stomach!" Groose grinned as they wandered into the village and then stopped at the pub, both of them getting off of their horses and then walked into the pub, ordering some steak for the two of them and some Lon Lon Milk after finding their seats.

"My my, you two look like a cute couple!" The waitress teased.

"COUPLE?!" Zelda and Groose yelled, the two of them looking at each other and blushing a bit.

"No no no, he's my knight!"

"Yeah, I'm just accompanying her on an important task!"

"Yeah! I don't like him that much!"

The waitress laughed. "Oh, okay. If you say so!" She said as she walked off with their meals, both of them unaware that they were being watched by someone.

"So… you don't like me?" Groose asked.

"Oh no no no, I do. It's just that… I see you as a friend, that's all."

Groose chuckled. "Good, because I see you as a good friend too." He said as the steaks came by a few minutes later as the two of them dug in, and after they were done with their meal, Zelda paid them a few Rupees and then walked back to their horses.

"Mmm, that was delicious."

"I'll say. Can't believe we didn't have any room for dessert."

"Ah, we'll come back later and get some of that ice cream that you were drooling over at the menu."

"M-me? Drooling over the menu? I don't do that!"

Zelda laughed. "Riiiight." She said as the two of them started to walk off… until she was suddenly pulled off. "Ack!"

"Zelda!" Groose exclaimed.

"Well well well, what do we have here?" A man smirked. "Looks like trouble came into my little town."

"Nngh, what are you talking about?!"

"Rumor has it that you were conspiring against the fair king of Hyrule." The man said.

"Conspiring against the king? Wh-what are you talking about?"

"You don't know? My goodness, you're dense." He said, and then pulled out a piece of paper. "I'm talking about this!"

Zelda looked at the piece of paper. "Mmph. Wanted… Zelda. Wanted for conspiring against the king and for an assassination attempt?! Wanted dead or alive?!"

"You're worth two million Rupees. That's a fair trade. However, the bounty is much higher if you're brought dead before the king!"

"Hey, back off, pal!" Groose said, shoving the man aside and freeing Zelda. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Zelda nodded.

"Who do you think you are?" The man asked, bringing out a kunai knife. "This bounty is mine, thank you very much, and I'm not going to let you take her away from me!" He said, quickly going to stab Groose but he quickly grabbed his arm and in one swift movement, he unsheathed his sword and swung upward to amputate a good chunk of his arm. "GAH!"

Groose then kicked the kunai knife away from him, then aimed his sword at him. "_Back off.__" _He threatened.

"Nnngh… this isn't over!" He said, putting two fingers to his eyes and then disappearing in a flash of smoke.

Groose scowled as he put his sword away. "Typical… looks like he was part of that Yiga Clan." He said and turned to Zelda who was staring at her wanted poster. "You alright?"

"He's gone mad!" Zelda exclaimed. "What in Hylia's name is he thinking?! I didn't even touch him!"

"You sure it's the Triforce of Power that's doing this?" Groose asked. "To me, it sounds like he knows what he's doing regardless."

"I'm… I'm pretty sure the Triforce of Power is corrupting him… I think." Zelda said as she threw it into a garbage bin. "I want to believe there's still good in him."

Groose sighed. "Alright, if that's what you want to believe." He said as Zelda climbed on top of Epona again.

"I'm going to set this right." Zelda said. "There's no way he would do such a thing… at least… I don't think he would…" She quietly said as they went back on the trail and headed off to Death Mountain, with Zelda starting to wonder if Link lost his mind before he took the Triforce or after.

Groose turned his head to Zelda. "Something on your mind?"

"Well, honestly, I'm not sure what to think." Zelda said.

"Is it about that wanted poster?"

"Yeah… part of me wants to believe that there's still good in Link, but… at the same time, I'm just… not sure."

"Hmm, tell me. What does your heart and mind think?"

Zelda thought about it. "Well, in my mind, I think he's lost it, but in my heart, I know that there's good in him, despite what happened in the castle."

"Ah, so you're at war with yourself then."

"I just want to know which one is right."

"Well, I'm pretty sure you know the answer to that. You're just in denial."

"No… I'm not denying it… at least, I don't _think _I am?" Zelda sighed.

"Wish I could help you." Groose quietly said as they got to the base of Death Mountain, but their horses started acting fidgety. "Whoa, boy! Whooooa! Take it easy!"

"What's gotten into you, girl?" Zelda asked. "Whoa! Whoa! It's okay! Easy girl, easy!"

Both horses calmed down, but both of them looked a bit nervous going up the volcano. "I don't think they want to go any further." Groose said.

"In that case, we'll leave them here while we climb the mountain." Zelda suggested as they tied them up to a post. "We'll be back!"

"See ya soon!" Groose said as they walked up the mountain, both of them dodging boulders rolling down the mountain while taking care of some Tektites that attempted to attack them, but as they got closer to the top, it started getting hotter. "Phew… is it getting hotter or is it just me?" Groose wondered.

"Oh no… it's not just you…" Zelda groaned, wiping the sweat off of her forehead.

"Phew… do you think we'll make it?"

"I'm… I'm pretty sure…" Zelda said, as they kept climbing, but every step they took exhausted them until Groose collapsed. "Groose!" She exclaimed as she went over to him and tried to pick him up. "Come on, we still got… a little ways to go…!" She groaned as she tried to carry him, but the heat was too much for Zelda to bare and she collapsed, groaning a bit as she looked up at the sky. "I can't… give up… like this…" She breathed, her eyes drifting as a shadow overlapped the two of them.

* * *

"Your highness!" A scientist ran over to Link. "We found out what makes that Guardian tick!"

"Oh? What is it?" Link asked.

"It's apparently based on ancient technology from centuries ago. They dug this one up and it still worked like normal. There might be more of them underground!"

"No. Digging them up will take a long time."

"So what do you propose we do?"

"Tell me, how well do you think you can duplicate such a thing?"

The scientist chuckled. "Listen well, boy. I'm a scientist. Experiments are my second nature. Duplicating this Guardian will be a breeze!" He said creepily. "How many do you need?"

"As many as possible. Have them spread across Hyrule, have them target anything that poses a threat to _me.__"_

"As you wish, your highness!" He said and then walked off to his lab. "Also, I can make them as turrets and make them fly too!"

"Excellent." Link smirked, chuckling a bit. "Have them locate Aryll while you're at it!"

"Consider it done, m'lord!"

Link laughed a bit as he walked over to the balcony, looking over the prospering town. "Now… what to do with these boneheads?" He wondered to himself.

* * *

Zelda opened her eyes, staring at a rocky ceiling. "Where am I?"

"Why, you're in Goron Town. You're at the peak of Death Mountain."

"Huh?!" Zelda sat up and saw a Goron.

"Hello!" The Goron waved.

"How am I alive? …Wait a second, where's Groose?!"

"Oh, your weird haired friend? He's outside." He said. "As for how you're alive, we Gorons nursed you and him back to health and changed your outfit to something more heat resistant."

Zelda looked down, noticing that her clothing now consisted of a light red T-shirt and dark blue skirt and also having a red bandana on her forehead. "How in Hylia's name are clothing heat resistant?"

"I dunno, magic, I suppose." The Goron shrugged. "Your regular clothing is in that bag."

"Oh, thank you." Zelda said as she stood up and walked outside, where she saw a village of Gorons, where Goron kids jumped in a puddle of lava without even hesitating, a few Gorons relaxing in a hot spring, some homes near some pools of lava near a lavafall. "Whoa…"

"Hey Zelda!" Groose walked up to her, wearing a light red tank top and blue jeans, along with a red scarf over his neck. "About time you woke up, sleepyhead."

"We really are on top of Death Mountain, are we?" Zelda asked.

"We sure are! Wait until you meat the chief. He's a really great guy." Groose said.

"You met him?"

"Yup! He's right this way." He said, guiding Zelda across the village. "Watch your step, by the way. Pools of lava everywhere."

"I can see that." Zelda nodded as they made their way across and into a large hut.

"Well now! You're finally awake!" The chief beamed. "Nice to meet ya!"

"Nice to meet you too, mister… uh…"

"Please, call me Darunia!" The Goron grinned.

"Okay, if you insist." Zelda giggled.

"So, what brings you hear to Death Mountain?"

"I'm here on an errand. A very important errand."

"Oh? What would that be?" He asked, as Zelda explained what her journey was about. "Oh… well now! That seems like a good idea to save Hyrule now!" He said. "I'll be honest, I went to that party myself and I felt something off about that fella, didn't know what it was." He said. "But, if he's planning on dragging Hyrule through the mud, we can't exactly have that."

"Yeah… so, do you know where Din's Power might be at?"

"Do I know where?" Darunia let out a hearty laugh. "Of course I do!" He exclaimed. "It's inside the volcano as we speak, surrounded by lava!"

Zelda paled a bit, sweatdropping a bit. "Oh… uh… that's gonna be difficult."

"Not for us!" Darunia grinned. "We'll accompany you in the temple! We go in there all the time to gather rocks and eat them!"

_That__'__s a strange diet… _Zelda thought. "Wait… we?"

"Allow me to introduce you to my brother." Darunia said and whistled, as a bigger Goron walked in. "This big fella right here is Daruk!"

"Pleased to meet ya!" Daruk grinned.

"Daruk, we'll be sending these two inside the temple for their quest to restore Hyrule!"

"Sounds good enough for me!" Daruk said as he picked up Zelda.

"Wah!"

"You're coming too!" Darunia said, picking up Groose.

"Whoa! Whoa! Put me down!" He said as the two walked over to the edge of the volcano, both of them looking into it as they had a wild grin on their faces and jumped in, both of the two screaming while the Gorons were laughing as they landed directly on the grounds of the temple.

"Here we are!" Darunia said as they put down Zelda and Groose, both of them shaking like crazy.

"Come on! Not like a little height is gonna stop you! Let's roll!" Daruk said as they walked into the temple.

"I'm suddenly afraid of Gorons…" Groose quietly said.

"What was that? I can't hear you over my heart attack." Zelda said as they walked into the temple after their legs stopped feeling like jelly.

* * *

**I can't believe it... 9 more days until E3. Well, technically 8 because EA's shenanigans, but... let's face it. E3 officially begins as soon as Microsoft is dancing over EA's grave once again. **


	8. Too Hot to Handle

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

The four of them walked into the temple, seeing a lava lake in front of them as it was already bubbling, luckily there were passageways surrounding the lake as they walked around, while some Fire Keese flew around, not paying attention to the four. "So, what is it that you guys do in here, anyway?" Groose asked.

"Oh, we usually come in here, get some rocks, go back to our village and then eat them." Daruk replied.

"Don't you have plenty of rocks to eat?" Zelda asked.

"Technically, yes, but this temple has the richest rocks we've ever had." Darunia said.

Zelda sweatdropped. "I see."

"So the rocks in here are your favorite. That's understandable." Groose said as they saw a huge pile of rocks on top of some small stairs, and two doorways on both sides.

"Let's go to the right." Zelda said.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Darunia said.

"What's wrong?"

"You'll see." He said as they opened up the door to see a huge lava lake, but unlike in the entrance, there was no way to get across.

"Oh… that's a problem." Groose said.

"Wait a second, can't you Gorons go across that? I saw some of your kind playing in a lava pool." Zelda pointed out.

"We can, but the thing is, that lake is really deep and if we try to carry you across, chances are, you'll get singed." Daruk pointed out.

"Oh, now you tell us." Groose said as they walked the other way and opened up the other door, finding a spiraling pathway to the bottom, where they walked carefully down the pathway until they reached the bottom and walked into another door, where they saw geysers erupting as some red Chu Chus were strolling around along with some Dodongos. There was also a door across the room with some lava falls next to it. The room looked surprisingly easy.

"Dodongos… blasted things." Darunia growled.

"This looks easy to get through." Zelda said. "A little _too _easy."

"I'll be honest, we've never been down here before." Daruk admitted. "We mostly get the rocks on that staircase or mine the rocks in the temple, but those Dodongos tend to be a nuisance."

"Well, let's just ignore them and go on through." Groose said as he walked ahead and a fire wall blocked him from going further. "Wah!"

Zelda stared at the fire wall and then noticed that there was another firewall to the right as she walked to the left and then after a few feet, another fire wall blocked her. "I see. It's a maze. We have to feel our way to the other side."

"Oh, isn't that convenient." Groose rolled his eyes as the four of them wandered around the maze, with a few Chu Chus attacking them, but Zelda and Groose cut the jelly creatures up as they soon got to the middle of the room where a few Dodongos spotted them and then charged at them, but the four of them dodged their fireballs as Groose went in to slice their back, but it bounced off of it.

"That'll do you no good! Their hide is very thick! A sword will not harm them!" Darunia yelled, punching a Dodongo in the face.

"Now you tell us?!" Groose exclaimed.

Zelda had an idea. "Groose! Cover me!"

"Got it!" Groose nodded and then got into position, as Zelda quickly brought out her Sheikah Slate and pulled out a Remote Bomb, and then when she was ready, she quickly rolled the round bomb into a Dodongo's mouth right as it opened its mouth to breathe fire at Groose, and then Zelda hit the button again, causing it to explode inside the Dodongo as it rolled over to expose its soft underbelly as Groose quickly impaled it to kill it.

"That's one down!" Zelda grinned.

"YAAAAAH!" Daruk grabbed one of the Dodongos by the tail and slammed it into the ground, before jumping up and landing right on its soft underbelly, then grabbing the already dead corpse and started beating up the other Dodongo with it that Darunia had just flipped over, and then they both slammed their fists into them to brutally kill them.

"Gorons scare me." Groose whispered.

"I don't blame you." Zelda told him as they continued walking through the maze, occasionally killing a few Chu Chus that attacked them, but they eventually made it to the other side and walked into the next room, where it seemed like they reached a dead end, with some lava falls hitting the lava in the arena. "I can feel something."

"You feel a fight coming up?" Darunia asked.

"Yeah."

"Good, me too." Darunia smirked. "Alright, whoever's in here, come on out and fight!" He ordered as a big Dodongo roared and landed on the ground.

"What is this, a Dodongo King?" Zelda asked.

"King Dodongo? Nah, we got rid of him a week ago." Daruk said.

"This is just an abnormally big Dodongo." Darunia told him.

"Alright, let's take this bad boy out!" Groose said as the Big Dodongo quickly breathed fired at them, but they rolled out of the way as Zelda summoned a Cube Bomb from the slate and then threw it when it opened its mouth at her, having it explode in its mouth as it roared and fell to its side where Daruk and Darunia punched its soft underbelly while Zelda and Groose attacked its neck until it got back up and attempted to slap them with its large tail to hit the two Hylians, but Daruk got in the way and summoned his own protection to protect the two.

"You guys alright?" Daruk asked.

"Yeah, we're good. Are you?" Zelda asked.

"Not a scratch on me!" Daruk grinned as they repeated the same process as before, this time Zelda throwing a round bomb into its mouth after it failed to breathe fire at Groose and attempted to do the same with Zelda, the explosion caused the beast to roll on its back as Darunia and Daruk both jumped up in the air, pressing their hands together and they both slammed their fists into its belly, causing the beast to roar and spit out a treasure chest before it fell limp.

"Ha! What are you gonna do about it!" Darunia laughed, high fiving his brother while Zelda opened up the chest out of curiosity, and pulled out a blue rod.

"Hmm? What is this?" Zelda wondered.

"Looks like some kind of rod." Groose said.

"Hmm, I'll save it and see what it does." Zelda said as they walked back into the fire maze room, as Zelda decided to test the rod at the firewall in front of her, as ice shot out and doused the fire. "Oh!"

"It's an Ice Rod! That's a pretty cool thing. Pun unintentional." Daruk chuckled.

"A rod made out of ice." Zelda mused. "Fascinating." She said as they walked to a straight line, dousing the flames in front of them as they made it toward the other side with ease, then they walked back up and to the other side with the massive lava lake as Zelda fired ice at it, making an ice bridge for them to cross safely through the lava. "I'm loving this already!" Zelda giggled as they walked through the ice bridge, though Darunia and Daruk decided to swim through the lava for fun as they made it across and walked into the next room, seeing some rock platforms floating in the lava as they hopped between the platforms, but when they hit the last platform, a few Lizalfos landed on the ground and held rapiers.

"We got this!" Groose said as the Gorons held back while the two of them started attacking and then defending themselves by blocking the Lizalfos' sword play, and then Zelda brought out her Ice Rod and froze one of them before kicking them into the lava as Groose disarmed the other Lizalfos and then impaled it in the chest before removing the sword.

"Nice work, you two." Darunia praised.

"Yeah!" Daruk gave them the thumbs up as they walked up some steps and went into the final area, consisting of a large square room with a pile of igneus rocks in the middle of the room.

"Another dead end?" Darunia wondered.

"Just a bunch of rocks." Groose said.

"What do you say we mine these and head back to the village?" Daruk asked.

"That's a good idea." Darunia nodded and walked toward the large pile of rocks, which Zelda and Groose both noticed some small movement from the rocks, as the two bravely ran and stopped the two from going further. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"There's something off with this pile of rocks." Zelda said.

"Nonsense! What's wrong with-" The pile of rocks started to move, turning into an Igneo Talus. "Oh!"

"Looks like we got with a Talus! Blasted thing…"

"Let's rock this!" Daruna exclaimed.

The Igneo Talus started by throwing lava rocks at them, but they quickly dodged the attacks as Zelda grabbed her Ice Rod and quickly shot at the Talus, extinguishing its flames, but it turned to Zelda and started firing rock missiles at her, forcing her to run away from the attacks.

_Use Nayru's Love! _Hylia's voice echoed in her head after Zelda jumped away.

_Alright, here goes nothing. _Zelda thought and then closed her eyes right as a boulder was headed right for her.

"Zelda, look out!" Groose exclaimed as Daruk attempted to run over, and then Zelda opened her eyes.

"HAH!" She yelled, quickly doing a twirl as a diamond shaped shield protected Zelda, as the boulder bounced off of Nayru's Love and smacked into the Talus, knocking it over and dazing it. "...Whoa. Did I just do that?"

Darunia chuckled. "I think it's time for this big guy to get destroyed!" He exclaimed, pulling out a metal hammer with a smirk and then jumped in the air, spotting some ore poking out its back, as he smirked and swung his Megaton Hammer into it, dealing a ton of damage, but the Talus got back up and swung its arm at Darunia to knock him back.

Daruk had an idea right as it got on fire once more. "Hey Zelda! I have an idea!" He exclaimed.

"What is it?" She asked.

"It's gonna be a fun one!" He grinned.

"Well, whatever it is, it better be quick!" Groose exclaimed, dodging a boulder heading his way as Darunia swung his hammer to deflect a boulder, as its attention were on the two and not aware of what Daruk and Zelda were doing as Daruk positioned himself between the Talus and Zelda.

"You ready?" He asked, having a huge boulder in his hands.

"Ready!"

"Here it comes!" He exclaimed, throwing the boulder at Zelda as she used Nayru's Love, as Daruk ducked at the right time as the boulder made a direct hit on the ore, knocking it over, then Zelda ran over and used the Ice Rod to cool it down and also freezing the ore as well as Darunia jumped up and swung the Megaton Hammer on the ore, shattering it as the Talus crumbled into small rocks.

"Nice one!" Daruk grinned as he high fived Zelda.

"Gah!" Zelda exclaimed, her hand throbbing after high fiving the Goron as some pained tears ran down her cheek.

"Oh, sorry about that." He said, sheepishly scratching his cheek.

"N-no... i-it's fine!" She winced, thankful that her shoulder wasn't dislocated, then noticed a red crystal emerging from the debris as she walked over to it and absorbed its power.

_You now have the power of Din, also known as Din's Fire. Go to the Forest Temple in the Lost Woods, there you will find the Power of Farore and the Master Sword. _

Zelda nodded. "Won't let you down." She quietly said as a portal opened up, and the quartet walked in, where they ended up back in Goron Village.

"You two were incredible in there!" Daruk praised.

"Yes, indeed! You two don't back down from a challenge!" Darunia said and then grinned. "I like the both of you!" He said. "How about this, starting today, you are officially members of the Goron Tribe. Our new brother and sister!"

"Uh... what?" Groose asked.

"Put 'er there!" Darunia said, hugging Zelda tightly.

"Gaaaaah!" Zelda exclaimed, hearing a sickening pop. "C-can't... breathe...!" She groaned.

Daruk chuckled and did a friendly pat on the back on Groose. "GAAAAAAH!" Groose yelled, already down on his knees. "...I... I think you dislocated something..."

"Here, let me help put it back into place."

"NO!"

Darunia dropped Zelda, as she slowly and painfully got up. "Ow... ow..." Zelda groaned.

"Where are you headed off to now?" Darunia asked.

"Th-the Lo-Lost... Woods..." Zelda said, attempting to find the wind that was knocked out of her.

"Ah, I see! Well, have a safe trip!" Darunia grinned. "Hey everyone! Let's see our new brother and sister off with a traditional Goron goodbye!"

"Wh-what's that?" Zelda didn't even want to know.

"A Goron group hug!"

Both of them paled, losing their color throughout their body... before they screamed and ran off as fast as they could. "...Soooo, that's a no then?" Daruk asked.

"Ah, don't worry about it. We'll give them a group hug when they come back!" Darunia grinned.

* * *

**I think I'd prefer getting hugged by a Goron over a Bewear.**

**Also, Wooloo is precious and I will make it mine. Corviknight is also one heck of an interesting Pokemon too.**

**What are your thoughts on Dynamax? I think it's kinda on the "Meh" side and think it's bland compared to Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves, but hey... at least it's something, right? **


	9. Forest Temple

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda and Groose made it back down to the bottom of the volcano, holding their regular clothes as they panted after they got back to their horses. "Did… did we lose them?" Groose asked.

"I… I think so." Zelda panted. "Phew. I think my life flashed before I eyes when I got hugged by him."

"Mmph… same." Groose nodded. "What did they mean by brother and sister?"

"By my guess… we're part of the family." Zelda guessed. "Don't think I can take another hug from them."

"Yeah. So where to next?" Groose asked.

"The Lost Woods. That's where the Power of Farore is at, along with the Master Sword."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Groose grinned as they got on their horses. "…Also, you think we can get find someplace to get changed? I don't think we need this anymore."

"Good idea. Let's do it somewhere where I don't have my face plastered on a poster." Zelda suggested with Groose nodding and then both of them took off.

* * *

Link walked into the lab. "How's it coming along, my good mad scientist?"

"It's coming along! I've made duplicates already and it's coming along!" The scientist chuckled. "Soon, they'll be prowling along Hyrule in search for that girl."

_"__Excellent." _Link smirked and then noticed something on a table, an elixir with a dull color. "What kind of elixir is that?"

"That? I'd be careful around that if I were you." He warned. "It's completely unstable and I'm trying to perfect it. Right now, I'm not sure what it does, but I tested it on a mouse and it turned into a hairier creature before it ran off. Now I'm not sure where it is."

"When did you test it?"

"About a month ago, when the blood moon rose into the sky." He said. "It had no reaction earlier in the day, but when the blood moon came up, it turned into a nasty little thing and ran off. Nearly took my eye out too!"

"So it reacts to the Blood Moon…" Link mused. "Fascinating."

"I'm trying to counteract it because I'm trying to make the ultimate healing potion that will add a few years to your life, also be immune to any kind of illness that you have… I wonder if I need more Bokoblin eyeballs…"

"Let's not worry about the potion for now, let's just worry about creating these Guardians." He said, then looked down at the elixir. "Hmm…" He mused, seeming fascinated by it. "What did you put in it?"

"I don't remember the ingredients that well." He shrugged. "I wouldn't worry about it, I'll make the best healing potion of all time!" He said.

"If you say so." The king nodded and walked off, seeming mighty intrigued by that elixir.

* * *

"Okay, so where is the Lost Woods again?" Groose asked as they walked around.

"It should be around here somewhere." Zelda mused. "Maybe if we go into the forest, we'll find it!"

"And how do you know about that?" Groose asked.

"Uh… lucky guess?" Zelda shrugged sheepishly as they wandered around, unaware of something that was following them.

"You get the feeling someone's following you?" Groose asked.

"Now that I think about it… yes." Zelda said as they turned around but saw nothing. "Weird." She turned back around… only to get knocked off Epona. "Wah!"

"Zelda!" Groose exclaimed.

"Ehehehehe! This horse is mine now!" The figure exclaimed and took off with Epona, but Zelda got back up.

"Hey!" Zelda exclaimed, her hand catching on fire and quickly using Din's Fire to hit the figure directly.

"GAH!" He yelled, the explosion knocking him off of Epona as the horse turned back around and glared at the figure. "Ack! Please don't hurt me!" He exclaimed as he quickly backed up to a tree as Zelda and Groose walked up to him.

"Oh, it's just a Skull Kid." Groose said.

"Skully!" A voice exclaimed as they saw two fairies approaching them, one light and one dark red. "What have we said about stealing people's horses?"

"I'm so sorry!" The Skull Kid, Skully, exclaimed. "I just wanted to play some harmless pranks!" He said.

"Without this?" The dark red fairy asked, pulling out a creepy looking mask.

"Oh, I was wondering where that was." He said and put it on.

"…I'm getting bad vibes with that mask." Groose said. "Like, "a moon falling onto Hyrule" bad vibes."

"Eh? Why would I do that?" Skully asked. "The goddesses took away all the bad power from Majora, so now it's just a regular mask that lets me use psychic energy. I mean, really, all I'd do is do this." He said, snapping his fingers as Groose started floating in the air.

"Huh?!" He asked and then was launched high in the air. "AAAAAH!"

"…You're gonna bring him down, right?" Zelda asked.

"Oh, certainly." Skully nodded and then snapped his fingers, as Groose fell to the ground but stopped when he was just about to touch it, then he landed softly on the ground. "I can also mess around with your movement or make you blind for a few seconds. It's all harmless, really!"

"Okay, if you say so." Groose said.

"The last Skull Kid that wore this was definitely a troublemaker though, nearly crushed Hyrule hadn't the goddesses stepped in and reprimanded him, also a guy and a woman came in to stop them… they both had fierce markings on them too, like… oh, what was it, a Fierce Deity… something or other." He explained. "Because of what he did, the goddesses sapped all the evil energy out of it and the only thing that's left is harmless telekinetic energy."

"Harmless?! You could've killed me!"

"Ah, but I didn't! I'm not _that _cruel."

"He has a point. He seems rather nice." Zelda said and turned to the fairies. "And who are these?"

"Oh! This is Tatl and Tael."

"Nice to meet you!"

"Yo!"

"And I'm Skully! Nice to meet ya!" The Skull Kid greeted, shaking Zelda's hand.

Zelda giggled. "See? He's nice."

"Riiiiight." Groose quietly said with an eye roll.

"So, can you show us where the Lost Woods may be? We're looking for the Forest Temple."

"Oh! I know where it is! It's right this way!" Skully said as the trio guided the duo and their horses to the Lost Woods, where the forest got darker and a few Poes were lurking about, as he made a few twist and turns as the duo made their way around until they eventually made it to the Forest Temple, where they noticed it got lighter when they reached the area. "This forest is my home, so I know my way around the place!"

Zelda noticed a passageway toward the left of the temple. "Where does that lead?"

"That leads to Kokiri Village and Ordon Village, it's also where you'll find the Great Deku Tree. Really nice guy!" Skully walked off. "Take care!" He said and walked off.

"Told you he's nice." Zelda told him.

"I still don't trust him." Groose said as they walked toward the Forest Temple, hopping off their horses and seeing that the entrance was a bit too high. "Oh, that's inconvienent." He muttered. "Luckily, there's vines to climb up!"

Zelda pulled out her Clawshot and then aimed at a target just above the door and shot herself up. "Or just use this!" She said, tossing it down to him as he caught it.

"That works too!" He said as he used it and then shot up next to Zelda, then gave it back to her.

"Thanks." Zelda giggled as they walked right into the Forest Temple.

As soon as they walked in, a Skulltula dropped down from the ceiling and attempted to scare the two, but Zelda burned it alive with Din's Fire as it dropped down. "I love this spell!" Zelda giggled as they walked through the hallway where they walked through the door and found that it led outside into a gigantic courtyard full of flowers, vines, and streams with a small waterfall.

"It's so pretty!" Zelda beamed as they walked around the courtyard, when a few Deku Babas attempted to come and snap at them, but Groose cut them down.

"Nice try." Groose smirked as Zelda spotted a door near a bridge as she walked towards it and then walked in with Groose behind her as they walked down a corridor until they came across a wall covered in vines as they both started climbing up and then pulled themselves up onto a ledge and went into another door where they saw a walkway with a stream of water going by, as a few Octorocks attempted to shoot them, but Zelda used Nayru's Love to bounce the rocks back to them, knocking them out.

"Ouch, use their own weapon against them." Groose chuckled as they kept walking and went to the left to go further into the corridor until another walkway showed up on the other side of the steam as a wall blocked them from using the rest of the walkway they were on, forcing them to hop over.

"Is it me, or is the walkway getting smaller?" Groose wondered as they kept walking, which Zelda noticed the walkway was indeed getting smaller.

"Your eyes aren't deceiving you." Zelda said as they soon made it to a door just before they'd fall into the water.

As they went into the room, they noticed a door that was barred shut and there was an eye on the wall. "That's a bit creepy." Groose said, and then a Stalfos landed on the ground, glaring at the duo.

"And that's a bit creepier." Zelda said, unsheathing her rapier while Groose pulled out his sword, then the two ran toward the Stalfos, slashing it but it blocked with it's shield and countered with a powerful swing, but Groose blocked it with his sword while Zelda briefly used Nayru's Love to protect herself.

"Stay behind me, Zelda! I'll take care of bonehead here!" Groose smirked.

"Got it!" Zelda said as Groose and the Stalfos went to swinging at each other, their swords clashing numerous times and then the Stalfos attempted to disarm him but Groose rolled to the side and attacked it from behind a few times, forcing the Stalfos to jump back and growled at Groose.

"What's the matter, you spooky skeleton? Afraid of a measly Hylian?" Groose taunted as the Stalfos charged at him, attempting to shield bash him, but he jumped back at the right time and then he ran forward and swung at it, but the Stalfos blocked the attack, only for Groose to go for a low attack to the knee, causing the Stalfos to rattle in pain, and then the Stalfos used his good leg to kick Groose back.

"Ooof!" He grunted as he nearly fell over but caught himself, then he attacked the Stalfos a few more times and then rolled behind him when the Stalfos swung down, and then Groose swung his sword up, knocking the Stalfos down and then he leapt forward, putting his foot on the Stalfos and then impaling its backside to finish it off, disappearing a few seconds later.

"Whoa..." Zelda whispered in amazement. "That was so cool!"

Groose chuckled. "Ah, it was nothin'." He said, and then a chest fell from the ceiling, as the two walked over and Zelda opened it up, pulling out two bow and arrows. "Heeeeey!" Groose grinned. "One for each of us!"

Zelda looked at the eye and then put an arrow into the bow, aiming directly at the eye and fired... only for it to hit the door instead. "Oops." She said and fired another arrow, hitting above the eye, the on the left, then one just fell to the floor and one to the right of the eye.

"Have you ever fired a bow before?" Groose asked.

"Not really..." Zelda blushed a little.

"Watch and learn." Groose said, aiming his bow at the eye, pulled it back and then shot it, hitting the eye in one try as the door opened. "I did a lot of target practice at home." Groose grinned.

"Show off." Zelda muttered, causing Groose to laugh at this as they walked through the door, coming across another courtyard where they saw a patch of flowers, a pond, a waterfall, some butterflies flying around the area, and a door that had another target above a door. "I got this!" She said, pulling out her bow and fired an arrow, only to miss and hit a butterfly instead, pinning it to a wall. "Eeep! Sorry, little guy!"

"Congratulations, you killed a butterfly." Groose sarcastically said and then fired an arrow, hitting the mark as the door opened up. They walked in, though Zelda offered up a small prayer for the butterfly that she accidentally killed and walked in with Groose.

As they walked into a large room, they saw a door on the top of a ledge, but noticed that a ladder wasn't there, so they walked around the room and saw a series of small ledges for them to climb up on as they hopped along the ledges but saw that one of them was occupied by a Lizalfos, who was currently sleeping on the job, casually leaning on the wall and snoring. "Well, this is easy." Groose said and then stabbed it on the head to destroy it easily. "…Hmm, think it would be a lot funnier if this Lizalfos was some sleepy warrior that's a gatekeeper for a mansion, my sword was a dagger, and it screams every time I stab it in the forehead."

"That's oddly specific." Zelda said as they hopped across the ledges to get to the door and walked inside, then going into another corridor that had some Bubbles going around but Groose and Zelda quickly destroyed them before entering another courtyard, but this time, it was strangely quiet with no insects, a stream was completely dried up with no waterfalls pouring, the flowers were dead and the foliage was decimated.

"I think we found our target." Groose said.

"Yup." Zelda nodded as they took out their weapons.

"Alright, we can do this two ways. We can do this the easy way or the hard way!" Groose called out and then chuckled. "I've always wanted to say that!" He said while Zelda rolled her eyes.

"…Who are you…?"

Zelda and Groose looked at each other and quickly circled around each other, looking around the entire courtyard. "Show yourself!"

"…You look like playmates… have you come to play with me…?"

"Uh, define playing…"

"…I haven't had a playmate in a long time… the last one didn't last long…"

"What do you mean by that?" Zelda asked as Groose noticed something in the dried up stream, as his eyes widened.

"Zelda… look into the stream."

Zelda looked in, and noticed there were a lot of skeletons in there. "Oh my goodness!"

"…My other playmates never played well… they always ended up… limp…"

"Will you just show yourself already!" Groose yelled.

"…I wonder if you'll end up the same… so let's play… but I have one condition…"

"What would that be?" Zelda asked, as a creature appeared before them, looking completely wooden and puppet-like. It had claws for hands, it had black markings on its face and a slasher smile, it had dark green eyes as some propellers were on its back. It looked limp at first… before its eyes glowed red and snapped its head forward at the two.

"…YOU HAVE TO PLAY NICE…"

The puppet quickly slashed at the duo, forcing them to dodge the attacks as Zelda's hand caught on fire and used Din's Fire, but the puppet moved its body in a ragdoll-ish way to avoid the Din's Fire as it exploded behind it, and then it aimed directly at Zelda and slashed at her, but she blocked it with her rapier, struggling against the puppet but then it slashed it off of her and went to slash her, but she used Nayru's Love to have the claw attack bounce off and then she grabbed the rapier and attempted to stab it, but it blocked the stabs with ease.

Groose saw the propeller on its back, noticing it was keeping it afloat. "Aha…" He mused and then pulled out his bow, aiming at the propeller and shot the first one, making a direct hit as the propeller fell off. The puppet bent its head backwards and let out a loud shriek as it flew directly to Groose and attacked him, forcing him to block with his sword and counter attacked him.

Zelda saw one last propeller on him as it was attacking Groose as she pulled out her bow and nocked an arrow, aiming at the wooden creature, taking a deep breath and released the arrow, as it flew directly to the propeller, causing Zelda to grin. It's going to be a bullseye, she can feel it! The arrow hit the target... but not the target she was aiming for. The arrow actually overshot and hit a wall instead.

Zelda's eye twitched. "Alright, that's it!" She said, pulling out her Clawshot and aimed at the puppet as it knocked down Groose, raising it's arm to deliver the final blow as Zelda fired the Clawshot, making it's mark as it hit the propeller, then she yanked it, pulling it off as the puppet fell to the ground.

However, the puppet got back up and twisted it's head, shrieking and ran at the Hylian, waving it's arms around and striking Zelda, but she blocked it with her rapier. "Alright, that's it! I've had enough of this stupid puppet!" She exclaimed, her hand catching on fire as she put her hand on its chest and unleashed Din's Fire, as the puppet screamed, trying to get the fire off of it but it couldn't as it kept screaming.

"...You don't know how to play nice...!"

"Says the freak show that was flying around!" Groose exclaimed.

"...You... You two... I am going to haunt you for the rest of your days...!"

Zelda glared at the puppet. "Looking forward to it."

The puppet let out one last shriek before it collapsed on the ground, lifeless as the fire started breaking it apart before it turned into ash. "Good riddance." Groose grumbled.

Zelda noticed that a green crystal rose from the ashes as she walked over to it and took it, absorbing it into her body.

_"You now have the power of Farore. Farore's Wind. You now have the three powers of the goddesses, however, your journey has just begun. Retrieve the sacred sword in the forest." _

Zelda let out a nod and turned to Groose. "Let's go."

"Right." Groose nodded as they walked into the portal and ended up back at the entrance of the temple, where they then walked to the left, where they walked into Ordon Village, where the villagers were going about their day.

"Oh! This is an unexpected surprise." A voice said as they turned to see a young woman approach them. "We don't normally have visitors, so this is an unexpected, yet welcome surprise. What are your names?"

"Zelda."

"The name's Groose!"

"Those are some nice names. My name is Ilia." She said. "What brings you to our village?"

"We're looking for a sacred sword. Do you know where it is?"

"Oh, you mean the Master Sword? I've heard about it... you just go through this forest and you'll get into Kokiri Village. I'll have to warn you though... The gatekeeper in that village tends to be really unfriendly."

"Alright, thanks." Zelda nodded and then walked in the direction that Ilia pointed to with Groose right behind her as they walked through the forest until they came across a small bridge where they walked through and into a tree trunk that would lead them into Kokiri Village.

"Hooooold up a second!" A small Kokiri boy exclaimed. "I'm not letting giants enter our village!" He said. "You can go back to that smelly old dump you call Ordon Village!"

"We need through, and you're not stopping us." Zelda said.

"Ha!" The boy smirked. "You can't get passed old Mido! Do your worst."

Zelda chuckled. "Okay!" She said and closed her eyes, using Farore's Wind to teleport behind Mido.

"Huh?! Where'd you go?"

"Right behind you."

"Wah!" Mido turned around. "How did you do that?!" He asked as Zelda walked away with a giggle. "Hey! Don't walk away from me!" He exclaimed and then turned around to see Groose. "Can you do that?"

"Nope."

"Good, you're not getting passed me." He said, as Groose chuckled and picked up the little guy. "HEY! HEY! PUT ME DOWN! PUT ME DOWN RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

Groose set him down a few seconds later. "Have fun guarding!" He said and followed Zelda.

"Good, that'll show him." He said and then it dawned on him. "Wait, did he go in too?!"

Inside Kokiri Village, the Kokiri saw the "giants" before them, and instead of running away in fear, they crowded around the two in awe.

"Excuse us, do you know where we can find the Master Sword?" Zelda asked.

"I know where it is!" A voice said as they turned to see a young woman, who is as tall as a Kokiri approached them. "Hello, my name is Saria." She greeted warmly. "I see you got passed Mido. Don't worry about him, he may come off as a cold individual, but he's very soft on the inside."

"I do NOT!" Mido said from afar.

"I can show you where it is." Saria said as the two nodded as they followed Saria through the village and into a narrow passage until they saw the Master Sword resting on a pedestal in front of a large tree. "Great Deku Tree, you have guests."

"Ah, I can see that. Welcome, young ones." The Deku Tree spoke.

"Did that tree just talk?" Groose asked in surprise.

"I have had a vision that two young people would come into this forest, and it looks like you have come. There is a great evil on the horizon and it must be stopped before all of Hyrule perishes. You g lady, you wouldn't happen to be Zelda, would you?"

"That's me."

"Excellent. Now, come forth and retrieve the Master Sword. I must warn you though, those with a pure and noble heart may pull out the sword. Those who don't take a lot of years off their life."

*Understood." Zelda nodded and walked toward the Master Sword and got close to it, taking a deep breath and placed her hands on it, attempting to pull it out but to no avail. She pulled away for a split second to take another deep breath and placed both hands on it, firmly holding it in her hands and started pulling, the Triforce of Courage shining brightly from her wrist and very slowly pulled the Master Sword up until it was fully out of the pedestal.

As soon as Zelda pulled it out, she brought the blade close to her face, humble to receive such a sacred sword before raising the sword triumphantly. "Whoa..." Groose breathed.

_"Master..."_

"Huh?" Zelda wondered as the Master Sword started glowing blue before a blue spirit popped out of the sword. "Whoa!"

"You have pulled me out of the pedestal, I am your humble servant."

"Who are you?" Zelda asked.

"I am the Master Sword, but, the goddesses granted me a name before putting me into the sword. I am Fi."

Zelda smiled. "That's a pretty name."

"Thank you... I guess?" Fi tilted her head a little before getting closer to Zelda. "I will not let you down, master." She said before going back into the sword.

"Be patient with Fi." The Deku Tree said. "It's been a while since the last hero of Hyrule came to hold the sword, so she may come off to you in a bad way, but she is willing to fight to the end."

"I understand." Zelda nodded and then closed her eyes.

_"You now have the Master Sword. Go back to Kakariko Village and wait for further instructions." _Hylia instructed.

"Right." Zelda nodded and turned to Groose. "Wei heading back to Kakariko."

"Got it." Groose nodded as Zelda turned around to the Deku Tree.

"Farewell, Great Deku Tree. It's been an honor being her." She said, bowing humbly before heading back to Kakariko.

"Good luck, Zelda. You are going to need it."

* * *

**Sorry about the wait! Had some personal stuff going on, but I'm alright!**

**Anyway, what's going on in the gaming world? *Sees that an analyst says that the PlayStation 5 will cost $800***

**Oh... Oh my... I think... I think I'm gonna lie down for a few... take care!**

**EDIT: Apparently I got my goddesses mixed up without even realizing it. One of my friends pointed out that Zelda said that they were going to get the Power of Nayru next in the Lost Woods despite already having it. Whoops! **


	10. The Way of the Sheikah

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda and Groose got back on their horses and walked back to the Lost Woods. "So, what are we doing now?" Groose asked.

"Going back to Kakariko and waiting for more instructions from Hylia."

"Sounds good to me." Groose chuckled. "So, what was that blue spirit thing in your sword?"

"Her name is Fi." Zelda replied. "She's basically the Master Sword itself in spirit form."

"Well, that's good to know… I didn't realize anyone could be inside the sword." Groose mused.

"Neither did I." Zelda shrugged. "…Geez, where's that Skull Kid?"

"I can show you the way." Fi said from the sword and popped out of the sword.

"You can?"

"Yes. Follow me." Fi requested and went through the forest, the two following the spirit as they worked their way through the forest before it got lighter, and then they were out in the clearing. "Here we are."

"Oh ho! That's awesome!" Groose exclaimed. "Thank you!"

"Anytime." Fi nodded and then went back into the sword as they walked around.

"Okay, so where's Kakariko?" Groose asked.

"Oh, Kakariko is… uh…" Zelda blinked, sweatdropping a little. "Hey Epona, you've been there a lot of times, right? Can you show us the way, please?"

Epona let out a small neigh, as if she was mocking her. "Hey, don't mock me! I've been there at least once!" She defended, as Epona let out a few neighs as if she was chuckling and then walked toward the direction where Kakariko is. "Thank you."

"Alright, lead the way, girl!" Groose said as they walked forward, both of them enjoying the scenery while Epona led the way at a casual pace. Fi, on the other hand, started feeling uneasy.

"Master, don't be alarmed, but I'm sensing something powerful nearby."

"What is it? A Hinox? A Lynel?"

"I am not sure… but keep your eyes open."

"Okay." Zelda nodded.

"Eh, I'm sure it's probably something underground that she detected. Maybe like a Stalchild or something." Groose said.

"Probably." Zelda said as they walked around, unaware that in the horizon, a Guardian walked around and scanned the area before spotting the two, its color changing into red and aiming a laser dot at them, directly at Zelda, charging its laser and firing, barely missing Zelda as the laser threaded the needled between Zelda and Groose.

"WHOA!" Groose yelled as the laser hit the ground and caused an explosion, startling them all.

"What in the name of...?!" Zelda asked and turned her head to the attacker. "What the heck is that?!"

_"I'm scanning it right now!"_ Fi said. _"...That's a Guardian! It fires powerful lasers that can cause explosions, as you can see."_

"Is there a way to destroy them?"

_"Yes. The legs can be cut to render them immobile, but the head is the one you really need to worry about. It is highly recommended that you deflect it with a shield!"_

Zelda hopped off of Epona. "I got something better!" She said as the Guardian aimed directly at her, aiming its pointer directly at her, then it fired, and in a split second, Zelda used Nayru's Love to reflect it back. However, instead of sending it back to the sender, the laser bounced off and went in a random direction, striking a Bokoblin camp in the distance, which just so happened to have explosive barrels in their camp. "Uh… whoops."

_"I was 99% sure that it wouldn't work. Nayru's Love would send it in an angle, a shield wouldn't do that." _

Zelda paled a bit. "Now you tell me?" She said as she quickly got on Epona and ran off as she and Groose took off on their horses with the Guardian following them, barely avoiding its lasers until they made a hard right as a laser struck a sleeping Moblin. The Guardian made a hard right and fired another laser, nearly hitting them as Groose's horse was freaking out while Epona was keeping a cool head, not caring if the explosions were mere meters away from her.

The Guardian fired another laser, landing inches away from Groose and his horse, knocking them both down. "Gah!" He yelled while the horse neighed in pain.

"Groose!" Zelda exclaimed, and then thought of her Clawshot and pulled it out, aiming at Groose while the Guardian aimed at him, thinking it was an affiliate of Zelda and started to charge its laser, then Zelda fired her Clawshot. "Grab on!" She yelled as Groose saw this and grabbed it, then Zelda yanked him away from the horse right as the Guardian fired the laser.

"NO!" Groose yelled, hearing his horse neigh in agony before it felt silent. "No… that was my horse my dad gave to me when I was a kid!"

"There's no time!" Zelda said as Epona took off and the Guardian aimed directly at them and charged its laser, but a rock hit its head as it turned around while firing its laser at another Bokoblin camp and saw an angry Silver Bokoblin smoldering from its campsite that was it's only survivor. It let out a war cry and threw another rock, as the Guardian stared at it before walking up to it, lifting its leg up and crushing the Bokoblin into the ground with its foot before turning around and seeing Zelda and Groose long gone.

"That was a close one…" Zelda sighed with relief. "I think we lost it." She said and looked at Groose. "I'm so sorry about your horse…"

Groose sighed. "It's okay… I had that horse when I was a little guy and helped me through the most difficult times. He was old, but he had a lot of fight left in him… he would always cheer me up and I don't think he'd want me to mope around." He said and turned around. "I'm gonna miss you, big guy." He quietly said as Epona guided them back to Kakariko. "What _was _that thing, anyway?"

"I have no idea… but I have this feeling there are more Guardians out there in Hyrule."

"They looked robotic… where did they come from?"

"No idea, but I have a feeling our kingly "friend" has something to do with it." Zelda said, sounding a bit annoyed. _Link, for the love of Hylia, I am going to get you back. _She thought as Epona made a turn and ran into a forest that had a small trail, then they were surrounded by rock walls until they made it into Kakariko, walking directly toward Impa's home.

"Oh! They're back!" Paya exclaimed as she was sweeping the ground as Impa walked out of her home and she let out a chuckle.

"Welcome back, Zelda." Impa said. "Who's your friend?"

"Groose. He's my body guard." Zelda said.

"Well uh… I wouldn't say _that__… _but yeah." Groose chuckled. "Name's Groose."

"Hello there, Groose. My name is Impa." Impa greeted, and then they heard a door being opened as they turned to see Aryll running down the stairs, then she quickly hugged Zelda.

"Oh, Zelda! I missed you so much!" She smiled.

"I missed you too." Zelda said, hugging her back.

"So, do you have the Master Sword?" Impa asked.

"I do." Zelda nodded and unsheathed the Master Sword.

"So the legends are true… the blade of evil's bane." Impa breathed and then they saw the blade glowing blue and then Fi popped out.

"Ack!" Paya yelped, jumping back as she wasn't expecting anything to pop out of the sword.

"Hello, everyone. I am Fi, the spirit that resides in the Master Sword."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Fi." Impa greeted.

"Cooool!" Aryll grinned. "I'm Aryll!"

"A pleasure." Fi nodded.

"So, what are you doing next?" Impa asked.

"I've been told by Hylia that I'm to come back and wait for further guidance." Zelda said.

"That's probably wise. Come in and you can tell us all about your adventures." Impa suggested as they all went in the home.

* * *

_Later that night__…_

Zelda yawned as she went in her room, Groose went in another room that was right next door to her as she set down the Master Sword and her items on the wall and climbed into bed. Fi did not go back into the Master Sword, she went to the top of the roof to keep watch of the entire village.

"Hey. Need some company?" A voice asked as Fi turned her head to see Aryll climbing on the roof.

"No. I am fine. It would be wise for you to go back to bed."

"And leave you here all alone? No one likes being lonely." Aryll said and then sat down next to Fi.

Fi let out a small chuckle. "I suppose you do not take no for an answer."

"Mhm! You got that right!" Aryll smiled. "After all,I imagine living in the Master Sword can be quite lonesome."

"I get by."

"But what if Zelda puts you back where she found you after this whole mess is over? You wouldn't have anyone to talk to."

"I am very patient. I will wait until someone else comes by to retrieve me. Besides, the Great Deku Tree is not a very good conversationalist."

Aryll laughed. "I suppose you're right." She said.

"But seriously, princess. You should be in bed."

"Nuh-uh! I'm staying right here. No one should _ever _be alone, including spirits."

Fi sighed in defeat. "Oh, alright…" She said while Aryll looked up at the night starry sky.

"It's beautiful." Aryll smiled and then spotted something shooting across the sky. "Oh! A shooting star! Make a wish!"

"…A wish?" Fi asked, looking at Aryll in surprise. "I do not understand."

"You don't get out much, do you?" Aryll giggled. "When someone sees a shooting star, you can make a wish for anything you desire!"

"Does it come true?"

"Not really, but it's fun to make a wish!" She said, winking at Fi. "Come on, you can do it too." She said as Fi looked up at the sky, closing her eyes and then reopening them for a few seconds. "What'd you wish for?"

"I wished for the protection of my master and for her well being. It is a long bumpy road ahead. She is also running away from the truth of what her friend truly became. I wish that she would soon see the truth."

"Neat! I wished for Hyrule to be back to the way it was." Aryll said. "Considering what Link was doing, I'm not sure Hyrule will ever be the same. I want my brother back… but I truly think he's long gone…"

Fi looked at Aryll and then reached her hand out, gently patting her on the head. "That is a good wish. Do not worry, I'm sure Hyrule will be back to the way it was."

"And my brother?"

"I am not so certain."

Aryll sighed. "I was afraid of that." She said and thought of something. "I'll be right back!" She said and then climbed down the roof, only to come back a few minutes later with some dandelions. "Here, blow on these!"

"Huh? What for?"

"It's for fun!" Aryll smiled and gently blew on one, watching them fly into the gentle breeze. "See?"

Fi looked at the strange plant that was in her hands. "It is so simple…" She quietly said, watching Aryll blow on another one and letting out a giggle as Fi looked at her dandelion again and blew on it, watching them all fly off.

"It's so cool, isn't it?"

"I suppose it is." Fi said, letting out a small smile.

"We should play a game to pass the time!"

"A game…? What is this "game" that you speak of?"

"I'll show you!" Aryll said and looked around, spotting something. "I spy something… purple!"

"Purple?" Fi wondered and then looked around, then noticing something and flew over to it, plucking something from a garden and coming back to her. "You mean this eggplant?"

Aryll laughed. "No no no, that's not how you play the game! You don't retrieve anything, you just look around and observe!"

Fi tilted her head. "I do not follow."

Aryll giggled. "You'll figure it out. Let's try it again!"

* * *

Zelda found herself waking up in a meadow. "Where am I?" She wondered.

_"Zelda."_

Zelda turned around, seeing Hylia appear before her. "Hylia!" She exclaimed. "Is it time?"

_"It is time, but not yet to restore Hyrule to its former glory."_

"Oh."

_"There are three more things for you to do. First, you must discover the power of transformation. It will help you along the way. The power of transformation is in Kakariko village. I recommend you talk with Impa about it, think of it as the way of the Sheikah."_

"Okaaaay…?" Zelda tilted her head.

_"Next is the power of summoning. There is a place in Gerudo Valley called the Arbiter's Grounds. You will find a mirror at the top of the grounds, and you will need to go inside it so you can learn the power of summoning."_

"Power of summoning…? What do you mean by that?"

_"You will find out on your own." _Hylia smiled. "_And lastly, you will need to go the city in the sky where you will find a blue haired girl living there. She will help you on your long journey ahead.__" _

"City in the sky? What's all this about?"

"_There is a cannon that is near Lake Hylia where one of the Zoras currently possess it. It will take you to an ancient village in the sky before people came down to Hyrule and populated it. You will receive more guidance once you gain the girl__'s trust." _She said and then slowly disappeared.

"What's her name? What's this city in the sky called!" Zelda called out.

_"The name of the city… is named Skyloft…" _She quietly said before disappearing.

* * *

Zelda opened her eyes, a sunbeam hitting her in the eye. "Agh!" She winced and groaned a bit. "Ugh… I really need to cover that up…" She sad as she sat up and yawned before going downstairs to have breakfast, while up on the roof, Aryll was sound asleep on Fi's lap, with the latter gently stroking her hair.

"Who knew ghost stories and games would be fun?" Fi mused, watching some of the village folk coming out of their homes and going about their day.

"…What the… what happened to my prized Eggplant?!" One of the Kakarikoans exclaimed. "Urgh! Don't tell me it was that stupid Cucco again!"

"Oops." Fi whispered.

"Morning Zelda. Restful night?" Impa asked while Zelda was eating her breakfast.

"Yes." Zelda nodded. "I have also received guidance from Hylia."

"What'd she say?"

"She said that I need to have the "power of transformation" and she asked you to have more info about something about 'the way of the Sheikah'."

"The way of the Sheikah." Impa mused. "Transformation? Sheikah do not transform." She said. "However, I _can _make some clothing for you if that's what Hylia means. Of course, it takes years of practice to master being a Sheikah… and even then, I don't think this is a good idea."

"What for?"

"…I have trained a lot of Sheikah in my life, and while they were bright students, nearly half of my students used this for evil and turned into this clan known as the Yiga Clan."

"Oh, that's terrible… and come to think of it, I came across this one Yiga Clan that tried to take me out because of a wanted poster."

"Typical… they always do things for money." Impa grumbled. "I'm not exactly sure I want to turn you into a Sheikah, but if this is what Hylia wants, then so be it. I'll go make you an outfit." She said and walked off.

"I guess in the meantime, I should do some training, specifically with my bow." Zelda said as she went upstairs to grab her bow and walked outside to a training area with dummies in position as Zelda grabbed an arrow and aimed, firing at the dummy, only for it to smack into a tree and scared some birds. "Mmph…" She groaned and did it again, hitting the fence line this time. She kept firing, getting more and more frustrated as Groose, Fi, Aryll and Paya all watched it.

"How about taking a deep breath and relaxing?" Paya suggested.

Zelda grabbed her arrows and did it again, this time taking a deep breath and relaxed herself, aiming directly at the dummy, pulling the string back and concentrated… and then fired the arrow, and then it missed and struck a Cucco that was minding its own business. "BWAAACK!"

"Oh, sorry!" Zelda exclaimed as the Cucco walked over to Zelda, an arrow in its wing as it pecked her on the foot. "OW!" She yelled as the Cucco shook the arrow out of its wing and flew off in annoyance. "Geez, it was an accident!" She told it before sighing. "I don't know what I'm doing wrong."

"I think maybe the bow isn't exactly for you." Groose said. "Believe me, you missed a ton of shots when you got the bow in the Forest Temple."

"Thanks for reminding me!" Zelda pouted.

"Hmm… I think I know just what to do." Paya said as she walked in the house, and then came back with a crossbow. "Try this." She said as Zelda took it and hooked an arrow into it and aimed it, taking a deep breath and firing the arrow, and nicked the dummy.

"Oh!" Zelda grinned as she did it again, this time hitting the legs on the dummy, then the pelvic area when she meant to hit it on the stomach, then she hit the chest, then the arms, and then the head. "Yes!" She fist pumped and put away the crossbow as she gathered up the arrows.

"You looked like you had a steadier hand with the crossbow than with the actual bow and arrow. You really clicked with it."

"I sure did!' Zelda giggled.

"Well, I guess Paya saved her the embarrassment." Aryll said.

"Now now, be nice." Fi said.

"Hey, if you want, there are other arrows just in the shop." Paya told her. "We got Fire Arrows, Ice Arrows, Shock Arrows, Bomb Arrows… and we got a delivery of these arrows called Ancient Arrows. Not sure what they do, but I'd say get some just in case."

"Okay!" Zelda nodded and went to get some, getting 40 arrows each for about 200 Rupees and then came back, just in time when Impa came with a Sheikah outfit.

"Here, try this on." She requested as Zelda nodded and went back into the home and came back out wearing the Sheikah outfit. "How does it feel?"

"It feels weird." Zelda said. "And yet, strangely comfortable. How do I look?"

"Like a weirdo." Aryll teased.

"Hear hear!" Groose teased.

"I think she looks rather nice." Fi said.

"Thank you, Fi. At least someone appreciates it." Zelda chuckled and noticed something glowing from her wrist as she looked to see that the Triforce of Courage glowed brightly. "What's going on?" She wondered and then covered the area in a bright light before it disappeared, and then before anyone knew it, Zelda's body proportions changed, her hair color changed, her eye color looked different. "What the heck?" Zelda wondered, and then gasped, covering her hands on the cowl. Her voice changed as well.

"Your voice changed too!" Groose exclaimed.

"What in the devil is going on here?!" Zelda exclaimed. "I want to turn back to normal!" She said and then the Triforce glowed again, turning Zelda back to her normal clothes, along with everything else. "…What the…" She wondered and then closed her eyes, transforming into her Sheikah alter ego.

"Sweet Hylia… so this is what she meant by Power of Transformation!" Impa exclaimed. "The Triforce recognized the power of the Sheikah garments and fused it as part of your body!"

"This is so weird…" Zelda mused, and then dug around her pockets, finding needles, kunai, shurikens, grenades, Deku Nuts, even a small knife! On instinct, she quickly ran over to the training dummies, quickly firing needles and her other weapons while also doing a few graceful flips in the air and landing perfectly. She threw a grenade at a dummy and pulled the string back to pull the pin and caused the grenade to explode as she ran over and did a Bouncing Fish attack to knock the dummy into the ground.

"She's incredible! How is she learning so quickly?!" Aryll asked.

"Instinct, I presume." Fi guessed.

"That would be my guess." Impa said, watching Zelda cut down the dummy with her small knife, as it fell to the ground when she was done.

"That was amazing, Zelda!" Groose exclaimed.

"Thank you." Zelda chuckled. "I don't know what got into me."

"So now you're a Sheikah and you didn't even need any training at all, it just happened like that? That's insane, Zelda!" Paya said.

"It is…" Zelda nodded and then thought of something. "But please, call me Sheik in this form."

"That's gonna take a while to get used to." Groose muttered as Sheik tuned back to normal as Zelda, where she noticed her usual items were back to where they were.

"Interesting, my weapons switch out depending on my persona… fascinating." Zelda mused. "Well, we must be off now."

"Where are you headed?" Impa asked.

"Gerudo Valley."

"That is a long ways away. Take care."

"We will." Zelda nodded as they got on Epona once again.

"Fi! When you come back, we'll play some more, okay?" Aryll asked with a grin.

Fi looked at her and let out a bigger smile from before. "I would love that." She said and hopped back into the sword.

"Alright, let's go! Yah!" Zelda said as Epona neighed and ran off.

_"Hold it!" _

"Whoa!" Zelda said as Epona stopped. "What is it?"

Fi popped out of the Master Sword. "I recommend you get a shield, master. You can not go around defenseless forever."

"Good point…"

"Luckily, I am picking up on some shields in a building just a few buildings down." Fi said as Zelda nodded and they walked over to the shop, parked Epona and then walked into the shop where they saw a bunch of shields. "I recommend getting something really durable."

"Got it." Zelda nodded and went to browse for shields. "How about this one?" She asked, picking up a metal one.

"No, that will not do. That will rust easily and break apart."

"Okay… how about _this _one?" She asked, picking up a shield that a Lizalfos would occasionally hold.

"Durable, but it will break over time."

* * *

_Many shields later__…_

"Ugh! Isn't there any shield that's _really _durable!" Zelda complained.

"There is _one _shield I know." The shopkeeper said as they turned to him as he walked out to the back. "During my travels, I found some grave robbers digging up graves and was about to take off with this, but I stopped them. I had a feeling in my gut that I should keep it just in case someone else needed it." He said. "I think this might be the shield that you were looking for."

He came out a few seconds later, holding a shield in his hand that was covered in cloth. "I give this to you." He said as Zelda uncovered it, and she saw a glorious shield in front of her as her mouth dropped in awe as Groose looked in amazement while Fi nodded her head in approval.

"That is the shield you need." Fi said.

"How much is it?" Zelda asked.

"This was not on the shelves, so it is free." The shopkeeper said as Zelda picked it up, looking at it's beautiful detail and saw the Triforce Crest on top, as it was none other than the Hylian Shield, where Zelda strapped it to her back.

"I will take good care of it." Zelda said as they walked outside, Fi getting back into the Master Sword as Zelda and Groose got back on Epona, and then they took off to Gerudo Valley.

* * *

**I don't normally do these kinds of things, but... the gaming community lost a good man yesterday, so I think it'd be best if I shared my thoughts on the matter.**

**Desmond, or as everyone knows him on Youtube, Etika... was an interesting guy. I didn't like him as much when I first saw his reaction videos as I thought that his reactions was a bit _too _over the top and obnoxious. I get it, he's hyped like everyone else but I felt like he overdid it, y'know? But, I started watching his other videos and when you look past his over the top reactions and that one slur that he casually throws around, he looked like a fun guy that you could hang around with, you know?**

**I didn't know him personally, but as I watched Introspektive, HMK and Mighty Keef giving their thoughts on Etika... Desmond's a great guy. He's a total bro and I wish I got to know him, y'know? When he started having these mental breakdowns, I started getting worried for him. I didn't watch him all that often, but when I heard about his mental breakdowns starting around... October... I think? I was like "Uh, Desmond... you okay?" and I was starting to worry about an upbeat man that I don't really watch all that often, and felt relieved when he was okay... and then I saw the other breakdown videos in the coming months.**

**Before it was announced yesterday that he was officially dead, I watched his last video apologizing to everyone, and a few days ago, I recalled seeing a post of his belongings on the Brooklyn Bridge and I just had this sinking feeling... and then the post came in. Desmond Amofah... was dead. I wasn't really attached to him, but he seemed like such a great guy and... we lost a special man that day. **

**I may find his reactions to things a tad obnoxious, but with every Smash or any Nintendo announcement we had, my first thought was "I wonder what Etika is thinking about this?" and would find his reactions on my feed and I would watch the man do his shenanigans, doing what he does best. I would get a chuckle every time I'd see him do his thing... and you know what? It made me smile seeing him being his goofball self. We're all goofballs in general, including Desmond.**

**May that upbeat goofball rest in peace.**


	11. King of the Gerudo

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

"Okay, so where in the world is Gerudo Valley?" Groose asked as Epona was walking around in Hyrule Field.

"It should be on this map somewhere…" Zelda mused, looking through the Sheikah Slate.

"Maybe we should stop and ask for directions." Groose suggested.

"That's a great idea." Zelda nodded as they walked along and came across a little village within a few minutes, where they noticed the villagers fleeing into their homes as soon as Zelda and Groose came in. "Why is everyone so afraid? It's not like we're Stalkids or anything."

"True, but remember, you _are _a wanted woman." Groose reminded.

Zelda sighed. "Thanks for the reminder…" She said as they wandered around and then spotted an information center where they went over and saw a man cowering in fear. "Hey, relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Tell that to the wanted posters! His highness wants you dead!" He said. "He told us all about your malicious evildoings and he warned us that our village will burn down when you get here!"

"…Is that what he told you?" Zelda asked. _Sweet Hylia, Link__… __what on earth is wrong with you?!_

"Come on, would this charming lady be evil enough to burn down a village?" Groose asked, as Zelda blushed a little.

"Ch-charming?" Zelda stammered a bit.

"Looks can be deceiving! I should know, I've read it in the gossip column in the newspaper!"

"…Oh, you're one of _those _Hylians." Groose grumbled. "Look, we came for information."

"On what? Learning how to burn down a village?!"

"Oh, for Hylia's sake!" Zelda groaned. "We're looking on how to get to Gerudo Valley!"

"Gerudo Valley? HA! I'm not spilling the beans! I'm keeping those lovely ladies safe from the likes of you! Visiting hours are over!" The man said, shutting the windows down with a "closed" sign in front.

"Oh, for heaven's…!" Zelda growled. "You shouldn't believe everything on the gossip column you know!" She exclaimed. "Ugh… what's next, people believe everything they see in portable rectangular shaped boxes with a flimsy glass screen? If that happens, we might as well just drop a moon on Hyrule and call it a day!"

Groose sweatdropped. "That's oddly specific."

"Well, excuse me from being frustrated over people believing in gossip!" Zelda sighed. "…Sorry, I shouldn't yell like that. Just those people frustrate me. Like, before this whole crazy political meltdown happened with Link, I kept hearing gossip that King Rhoam secretly had a brothel."

"…Did he?"

"No! King Rhoam denied it, but it was going on for a few weeks before it died down. Ugh… don't get me started on the other gossip…" She grumbled.

"Excuse me!" A voice said as the duo turned around to see an elderly old lady approaching them. "I couldn't help but overhear that you were looking for Gerudo Valley?"

"Oh! Yes, we're looking for the desert."

"It is west from here. Keep going until you see a grand desert. Keep going until you see a town." She said. "I go there all the time and the king over there is so kind and gentle."

"There's a king in Gerudo Valley? I'm surprised we never heard of him." Groose said.

"I _did _hear about a king that lives in Gerudo Town… but I've never been there myself." Zelda mused. "Thank you for the directions."

"Anytime." The woman smiled. "Between you and me, I do not think you are a bad Hylian. I personally believe that our young king might be playing a prank on us and some of the nice townsfolk here are more gullible than others."

"It's a little out of season for jokes…" Zelda quietly said. "But if that's what you want to believe, then hey, who are we to stop you?" She giggled as they got back on Epona. "Come on, girl! Let's go!" She said as they headed off to Gerudo Valley.

_"__Master, I am a bit concerned about the desert." _Fi said within the Master Sword.

"How so?" Zelda asked as Fi emerged and then started flying next to Epona.

"Well, for one, deserts are extremely hot. I'd advise you to wear lighter clothing and bring a canteen of water."

"Why not go when it's night? It's a win-win!" Groose said.

"Sure, if you don't mind freezing to death." Fi said. "The desert gets really cold during the night."

"Oh…"

"It's risky, but we'll have to do it during this time. Let's just hope it's not too miserable." Zelda suggested.

"There's an 80% chance that you will get heatstroke." Fi said. "I am detecting an oasis in the middle of the desert, so perhaps you should go there first."

"Alright, let's go." Zelda said. "You ready for this, Epona?"

Epona gave a small whinny with a nod. "Alright, let's go!" Zelda said and then took off, where fifteen minutes later, they arrived in the desert where they were hit by a heatwave but they powered through as they kept going through the hot desert, but eventually, Epona started getting exhausted while Zelda and Groose started wiping sweat from their forehead and then Fi came out of the Master Sword and pointed in the direction to the oasis, where they made a small detour until they eventually saw the oasis.

"Oh thank the goddesses!" Groose exclaimed as they hopped down while Zelda guided the exhausted Epona to the water where the three of them started drinking the fresh water… though Zelda got a bit suspicious.

"Fi… what if this is a mirage and we're drinking sand?"

_"__Would I ever steer you wrong?"_ Fi asked. _"__This is fresh water. Besides, if Epona is drinking out of it, then that is a sign that it is not a mirage."_

"Good point." Zelda nodded and kept drinking before taking a dip into the water and playfully pulled Groose in.

"WHOA!" Groose yelled as there was a loud splash right after and then Groose came up for air while Zelda laughed.

"There, now our clothing is cool too!" She laughed.

"Next time, warn a guy. I almost drowned!"

"Oh, don't be so dramatic." Zelda teased.

"…Okay, that was a lie." Groose chuckled as they climbed out.

**SPLASH!**

The two of them turned to see Epona joining in the fun and cooling off in the oasis, and then noticed the two were out as she had a 'Well, this is awkward' look on her face and climbed out, shaking her body to shake the water out, then they got on Epona and headed off to Gerudo Town, arriving in ten minutes flat.

"So this is the place?" Zelda wondered. "Looks pretty neat."

"Well, let's go in." Groose said as they wandered to the entrance.

"HALT! You are not allowed in here!" One of the Gerudo yelled.

"Eep!" Zelda raised her hands. "We come in peace!"

"Not you, Vai are always welcome. Voe, on the other hand..." The Gerudo glared at Groose.

"Pardon my ignorance, but what the heck is a Vai and Voe?" Groose asked.

"It is ancient Gerudo language that a Vai is a woman and Voe is a man. Men are now allowed in Gerudo Town!"

"And why is that?" Groose folded his arms.

"It is tradition. Now buzz off! Young miss, we welcome you and your horse into the town." The Gerudo gaurd said as Zelda turned to Groose and shrugged before walking into the town with Epona while the Gerudo aimed their spears at Groose.

"Alright, alright... i'm leaving! Sheesh..." He walked off grumbling to himself. "How is a knight supposed to protect their maiden if they can't get in?"

"Psst!" A voice caught his attention as he saw a woman dressed in Gerudo garb behind some rocks, though her face was covered. "Over here!"

Groose walked over to the woman. "You talkin' to me?"

"Yes. I know how you can sneak in."

"What is it? Pretend to be a tattoo on a lady's arm and attempt to do a little dance to make it "move"?"

"...Oddly specific, but no. I give you these garbs that will make you look like a lady. These Gerudo are too easy to fool. It's fool proof!"

"Huh... i'll try it on." Groose said with a grin. "Thanks, lady!"

The lady giggled. "Anytime." She said... although her voice suddenly shifted to a masculine voice.

Groose blinked in surprise before backing away slowly. "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

* * *

_Back with Zelda..._

Zelda put Epona near a water trough so she could drink and then she wandered around the town. "I wonder where the Arbiter's Grounds are?" She wondered as she walked around and noticed a large palace at the other side of the town. "Hmm..." She rubbed her chin in thought and walked over to a guard at the bottom of the stairs. "Excuse me."

"Sav'aak." The guard greeted. "What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if I could go in the palace."

"As long as the king is inside, anyone may go inside. When the king isn't here, no one, unless if they are part of the staff or a family member, are allowed in."

"Sooo, is the king inside?"

"Yes. Go on in."

"Thank you." Zelda gave her a nod before walking up the steps and walked inside, where she was relieved to find that the palace was cooler than the outside. She wandered around, taking the time to scan the various items and portraits before she came across some big doors. "Is this the throne room?" She wondered as she carefully opened up the doors to peek inside, seeing nobody inside, then her curiosity got the better of her as she wandered into the throne room.

She saw various colored Rupees behind the two thrones, the carpet was scarlet red as there were candleabras plastered on the walls and were already lit. The windows were tinted blue and the thrones were covered in gold while the seating was red. It was decorated in Sapphire and Ruby gemstones. She looked up and saw a chandelier dangling above her.

"Pretty." She whispered.

"It sure is, isn't it?"

Zelda stiffened, paling a bit as she turned her head and saw a dark skinned male wearing a chestplate coated in Emerald on the sides as the Triforce Crest was on the chestplate. He was also wearing dark pants as he also wore a small red beard as his hair was straight, but spiky in the back as his hair was touching his shoulderblades. His arms were bare and so was his abdomen, as he looked ripped and complete with a six pack. There was a crown on top of his head that had Amethyst decorated on it.

"Wh-who are you?" Zelda asked, stammering a bit.

The man let out a soft chuckle. "I am King Ganondorf Dragmire III." He replied. "And what is your name?"

"I am Zelda." She said, finding her words.

"Zelda... that sounds familiar..." Ganondorf mused and then suddenly, both of their wrists started to glow as the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom shined brightly. "You have the Triforce of Courage?"

"And you have the Triforce of Wisdom?!"

Ganondorf folded his arms. "We have much to talk."

"STOP THAT VOE!"

"Huh?" Zelda and Ganondorf turned to the door as they saw Groose, covered in Gerudo attire running into the throne room.

"GIRLS CAN HAVE BIG GUTS TOO, YOU KNOW!" Groose yelled.

"I didn't need to see that." Zelda sweatdropped.

"Friend of yours?"

"He's my knight."

"I see." Ganondorf nodded. "Riju, desist!" He ordered as they put their spears away.

"But father, you kmow well that the Gerudo tradition is that-"

"I know, Riju. But we are making an exception." Ganondorf said.

"We would have caught him if Urbosa and mother weren't slacking." Riju grumbled and glared at Groose. "Voe. Put your original clothes on.

"That's the thing, my clothing is-"

"Right here." A voice said, as they turned to Nabooru holding Groose's clothes. "By the way, i heard that slacker comment, Riju."

"Just because you are the queen does not mean you should be slacking!" Riju glared.

"I'll just... change into the other room." Groose said.

* * *

_A few minutes later..._

"So sorry about that." Groose apologized as he returned, Riju shooting him a glare while the royal couple sitting on the thrones.

"What brings a couple of Hylians to our home?" Nabooru asked. "Especially if one is holding a piece of the Triforce."

"Wait, I know you..." Riju looked at Zelda. "You're in the Wanted Posters! You're a criminal!"

"I can assure you that I am not a criminal."

"I am sure this is a big misunderstanding." Ganondorf said. "Let us hear her side of the story. Tell us, why do you have the Triforce of Courage?"

"Honestly? I'm not sure myself, but... I think it all started back when my best friend did his test to see if he was worthy to become King, but the goddesses rejected him for his heart was not in balance. I was there, watching him scream at his father... and then later in the night, he killed King Rhoam in cold blood after taking the Triforce, but it split into three. I have the Triforce of Courage, you have the Triforce of Wisdom, and he has the Triforce of Power. I'm not sure why the Triforce of Courage chose me, or why Hylia picked me to restore Hyrule from Link, but I'm willing to go through with it."

"King Rhoam... is dead?" Nabooru whispered. "What about Queen-"

"Link killed her too. He dropped her from the balcony when I was checking up on him. Her corpse landed right in front of me..."

"Oh dear Hylia... what about princess Aryll? Please tell me she's okay."

"She's safe and is well hidden. But she can see Link for who he truly is. Groose can see it and he never met him yet... but as for me, I'm struggling to come to terms with it. I know Link is a good person, he's probably corrupted from the Triforce of Power. He wanted the throne so maybe it went to his head."

"Hmm..." Ganondorf had his arms folded. "What did Link do to you when you saw he wasn't who he is?"

"He was about to kill Aryll when I stopped him. I heard everything that he killed his parents and was about to kill her before I stepped in... and then he tried to kill me but I was saved by the Sheikah."

Ganondorf closed his eyes. "And you believe that deep down, your best friend is still in there somewhere?"

"Yes."

Ganondorf sighed. "I was afraid of that." He said and opened his eyes. "Zelda, there is this prophecy that I have studied when I was a little boy. I need you to listen to this."

"Okay." Zelda nodded.

"The prophecy that was foretold said that there would be peace among Hyrule for a long time, until one day, a prince born in Hyrule will seek the Triforce to claim the throne and his heart will be unbalanced despite appearing to be nice. The Triforce will split into three. One piece of the Triforce will reside within in, one will reside in a young maiden, one will reside in a wise King. The corrupt prince, now a king, will corrupt Hyrule and corrupt his people into darkness, until the young maiden rises up and stops him with a powerful army by her side. The three pieces of the Triforce will resonate and will begin a final battle between the king and the young maiden. In the end... the young maiden defeats the king and the darkness within Hyrule dissipates and is restored."

"Defeat..." Zelda whispered. "You don't mean..."

Ganondorf solemnly nodded. "The prophecy is being fulfilled as we speak. I'm afraid your best friend is long gone and the only way to stop him... is to slay him."

Zelda's heart dropped, tears started swelling up in her eyes. "No... No no no no NO! You're lying! That can't be true!" Her voice was starting to break. "Link's a good person, he would... he would never..."

"The truth will hurt, Zelda, but as soon as you are able to accept reality, the better off you will be."

"You're lying... he wouldn't... I wouldn't... None of this is true!" Zelda exclaimed, tears falling from her eyes. "Link is... Link is..." She clenched her fists and quickly ran off.

"Zelda!" Groose exclaimed.

"I'll go get her." Nabooru said as she walked out of the throne room to follow Zelda and found her in a fetal position on the stairs outside, silently sobbing. "This seat taken?" She asked softly.

Zelda looked up and sniffed a bit, before shaking her head and quietly said "Go ahead." as Nabooru sat down next to her.

"You have to forgive my husband, he tends to be blunt, but his heart is in the right place." Nabooru said. "Zelda, what do you truly believe?"

"I want to believe Link is a good person and he's just corrupted... but at the same time..."

"Ah, you're at war with yourself." Nabooru said. "One side believes that he's a good person, but the other side believes he is truly gone. I imagine seeing those wanted posters didn't help."

"No..." Zelda quietly said. "What am I supposed to do?"

"You just have to find the real answer within yourself. If you want to believe he's still good, then that's fine. It'll be a long bumpy road, but I'll support it. If you want to believe he's truly gone, then that's fine too. You just have to be at one with yourself. What do you side with? Running away from the truth or facing reality? You can't have both."

"I just wish I knew what to do... He's been my best friend when we were kids, and... I love him, I really do... but I'm not sure if..."

"Best friends at an early age, no wonder this is so hard for you." Nabooru wrapped an arm around Zelda. "It'll be okay, Zelda." She said as she heard Zelda's sobbing starting to increase in volume. "Just let it all out... It's going to be okay." She said as Zelda continued to cry into her chest.

* * *

One_ crying session later..._

"You're back." Ganondorf said. "Now, as I was saying-"

"Honey, just don't. She's already feeling miserable." Nabooru scolded.

Ganondorf rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry. You'll have to forgive me, Zelda. I'm not exactly... _gentle _with my words unlike my wife. I had no intention to making you cry."

Zelda sniffed a bit. "It's okay. Your heart is in the right place... but I'm going to try and prove this prophecy wrong. I am going to save him along with Hyrule."

Ganondorf let out a small chuckle. "Try as you might, it won't work, but I admire your bravery." He said. "Now tell me, I'm sure this isn't the only reason to your visit."

"Hylia spoke with me, she said I needed the Power of Summoning and said that I would need to go to the Arbiter's Grounds."

"Arbiter's Grounds..." Ganondorf mused. "The Power of Summoning isn't exactly easy..."

"She also said something about a mirror."

Ganondorf's eyes widened. "The Mirror of Twilight?! What in the name of Hyrule does Hylia want you there for?!"

Nabooru sweatdropped. "Sorry about this... He's not exactly in good terms with the Twili."

"The who?" Groose tilted his head.

"Long story." Nabooru said. "Honey, just man up and deal with whatever the Twili throw at you this time."

"Mmph... fine..." Ganondorf grumbled as he stood up. "I will take you to the Arbiter's Grounds. Let's go." He said.

"I'll come too!" Nabooru grinned.

"Riju, watch the place until we return. If Urbosa comes back, tell her where we are."

"You got it, dad!"

Ganondorf walked outside. "Fetch me my horse." He requested as a guard nodded and came back with his horse as he and his wife got on while Zelda and Groose got on Epona as the Gerudo King took off to the Arbiter's Grounds, and a little bit later, they arrived at the Arbiter's Grounds. "Here we are." The king said unenthusiastically.

"Something tells me we're gonna be in for a wild ride." Groose said.

"Yup..." Zelda nodded as they walked through the grounds until they got to the top where the Mirror of Twilight was shining brightly, then Ganondorf took a deep breath and going inside.

"Whoa! He just disintegrated!" Groose exclaimed.

"It'll be alright. We've done this before." Nabooru said as she went in, and then Zelda and Groose went inside as well.

* * *

_Meanwhile, in the Twili Castle..._

"Zant! I told you to make this floor spotless! Why am I seeing a dirty floor!"

"Coming your highness!" Zant exclaimed as he quickly went to scrubbing the floor.

"Yeah, scrub the floor, you traitor..." The queen snarled at him.

"Queen Midna! We have guests arriving from the Light World!" A Twili told her.

"Oh? Let us go greet them." She mused. "Come, insect. You are coming too."

"Yes, your most beautiful Excellency!" Zant exclaimed, hurrying off while Midna let out a dark chuckle.

* * *

**I was wrestling back and forth with Ganondorf's wife. Did I want Nabooru or did I want Urbosa? Asked a friend and he suggested Nabooru, which was my original thought but I wasn't so sure when I thought of Urbosa. Ah well!**

**Also, I teared up when Zelda started tearing up over the prophecy. My girl is going through so much... T-T**


	12. The Shadow Room

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda looked around as they entered the Twilight Realm. "This place is… creepy." She said.

"Once you get past the creepiness, it's actually not that bad." Nabooru said, then noticing her husband grumbling a bit. "Hon… just relax."

"I _am _relaxed."

"Nah, you look stiff." Groose said, with Nabooru snickering over this.

"He's right, you know!"

"Whatever…" He grumbled.

"Queen Nabooru! It's been far too long." A voice said as they turned to see Midna approaching them.

"Queen Midna!" Nabooru greeted warmly and the two hugged each other.

"So great to see you." Midna said and then turned to Ganondorf. "…Ganon." She scowled.

"Midna." Ganondorf scowled back, the two of them glaring at each other before the former turned his head away in annoyance while Midna rolled her eyes.

"So, who are these two?" Midna asked.

"I am Zelda, and this is my knight, Groose."

"Hey, how ya doin'?" Groose greeted.

Midna chuckled. "Charming." She said and then noticing Zelda bowing. "Oh no, we don't do that here."

"Oh… awkward…" Zelda whispered. "So… you're queen Midna?"

"Yes, that's right." Midna nodded, which Zelda noticing Zant waving a large leaf to seemingly cool down the queen. "Come, let us go back to the palace where none can disturb us. Come, you sniveling oaf."

"Yes, your graciousness!" Zant exclaimed and went after her as they walked back into the palace where Midna sat down on the throne, clapping her hands as Zant went on his hands and knees as Midna put her feet on her back.

"Um, no offense, your highness… but is that necessary to do to… um… I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"Zant." He told her.

"That's funny, I don't remember telling my foot rest to _speak.__" _Midna glared, causing Zant to stiffen.

"Is it necessary to do that to him?" Zelda asked.

"Yes." Midna said. "This unforgiving bastard thought it would be a good idea to stage a coup to get me off the throne so he could take it for himself. He wanted the throne and become the King of Twilight. Fortunately, one of my servants found out about this and I went to settle things. He was saying "It's time for a little redecoration in the Twilight Realm. When I'm done with you, it'll be different… and you'll be exiled!" and other things he was spitting out. I offered up a duel. If I won, he'd never do this again and he'd be personal slave for the rest of his life. If he won, I'd quietly leave the Twilight Realm without a fight. He also threw in turning me into an imp for some reason. You can guess how that went."

"I would've gotten away with it too… if one of her servants didn't find out about what I was doi-" Midna's foot slammed into his back. "-EEEEEE-HEEE-EEEEING! OOOOOOOW!"

_"__SILENCE!" _Midna yelled.

"Brutal…" Groose whispered.

"Oh, and he decided to wear this ridiculous mask too." Midna said, snapping her fingers as Zant's mask appeared in her hands. "I mean, really… this doesn't look the _least _bit threatening, especially considering the oaf who's wearing such a thing."

Zelda sweatdropped. "I… see."

"So, what brings a couple of Hylians to the Twilight Realm? We don't normally get any visitors… aside from Nabooru and that bumbling oaf that she married."

"Who are you calling a bumbling oaf?!" Ganondorf snarled.

"You heard me!" Midna smirked. "What'ya gonna do about it, Ganondork?"

"_GANONDORK?!__" _

"Alright, break it up, both of you!" Nabooru ordered, getting between the two. "Honestly… do you _have _to antagonize him?"

"Seeing his reactions is oh so priceless." Midna chuckled. "Anyway, like I was saying, what brings you here anyway?"

"Well, we're here for the Power of Summoning." Zelda said.

"Power of Summoning? What in the name of Twilight do you need _that _for?"

"To stop Link."

"Link? The new king of Hyrule? Why do you need to stop a good king like-" Midna's foot hit Zant on the head. "OW!"

"Zip it, or I'm feeding you to the Twili Beasts." Midna threatened. "Why do you need to stop Link?"

"Because it's in the prophecy." Ganondorf said.

"Ugh! You and your prophecies. _THIS _is why we broke up. You're all 'prophecy this' and 'prophecy that' and all that horseshit." Midna groaned. "Can't you just live a little and not follow prophecies to the letter? It's more fun that way."

"I am not _that _bad and you know it!"

"All that wisdom… and in your infinite wisdom, you chose to shove prophecies down my throat until I couldn't breathe!"

"I did not!"

"That's how it came across! SERIOUSLY, Nabooru, what do you see in this guy?"

"He was cute and was charismatic?" Nabooru shrugged. "He's mellowed out… somewhat."

Midna rolled her eyes. "Right, I'll just stick with having fun and not having prophecies shoved down my throat. Oh no, the blood red moon is gonna bring calamity to Hyrule! If I'm not evil, then the goddesses won't flood Hyrule! Do you even _listen _to yourself?"

"I have to admit… those_did_ sound a bit silly." Nabooru said. "_Maybe _you shouldn't have listened to Kotake and Koume filling your head with those things when you were younger."

"They're senile, that's what they are!" Midna said. "I'm surprised they haven't kicked the bucket yet!"

Ganondorf folded his arms, closing his eyes and blushing a bit. "Can we get on with it?"

Midna cleared her throat. "Right… anyway. Why do you need to stop Link?"

The Master Sword started glowing and Fi popped out of it. "It is because Link is going to drag Hyrule to the ground."

"How so?" Midna asked curiously.

"My master has seen first hand what he's like. Tell her." Fi said.

_Throw me under the horse carriage, why don__'__t you? _Zelda thought. "Well, Link is my childhood friend and I've trusted him throughout my life… until something happened. He was taking the test to see if he'd be worthy to run Hyrule after King Rhoam passed on, but that never happened since his heart was not in balance. In a twist of rage, he murdered King Rhoam and the queen."

Midna gasped a bit. "Rhoam's dead?! …Aww… he was so fun to mess with at times…"

_"__Midna…" _Ganondorf glared.

"Tch, spoil sport…" Midna grumbled. "Continue."

"Link also framed his sister for the murders and was about to execute her a few hours after he was coronated to be king. Aryll is a precious little girl and wouldn't harm a fly, so I intervened when he confessed to his sister that he murdered his family. He was about to kill me until I noticed something happen. He has the Triforce of Power in his hands, so he's _got _to be corrupted… and that's hwat I want to believe, despite him almost killing me before the Sheikah came in to stop me."

"Whoa whoa whoa, TIME OUT!" Midna said. "You mean to tell me the prince of Hyrule Castle just wandered into the chamber where the Triforce was at and took it despite his heart was not in balance?"

"Yes… Rhoam also said that Aryll would make a better ruler than him."

"Hmm…" Midna folded her arms. "So, you believe your childhood friend is innocent and just corrupted by the power?"

"That's right."

"If that's what you want to believe, than I'm not stopping you. However… the way I'm seeing this? He has had an agenda before he did the test. Tell me, what do the Hylians see in him?"

"They see him as a just and righteous king. He's popular with the crowd."

Midna started bursting into laughter. "Oh my Twilight! That's rich! They're all just a bunch of sheep and thinking he can do no wrong! That's hilarious! Tell me, what did he do after you left?"

"Well… he sent out wanted posters out for me, not to mention manipulating a town to making them think I'm extremely dangerous."

Midna continued to laugh. "Stop! STOP IT! I can't breathe!" She laughed.

"…There's nothing funny about this." Zelda said, frowning.

"It's funny that everyone else believes that Link is a good king! HAHAHAHA!" Midna laughed. "Oh, I needed a good laugh today…" She chuckled. "Hylians… they're all a bunch of morons. They believe anything they see or hear as truth. Manipulate the crowd into thinking you're dangerous when you look like you can't even hurt a Bokoblin? That's rich! Hylians are so gullible and they quickly believe anything. They could believe something like a top secret military base holding some awesome monsters and they'll gather up pitchforks and torches to raid the place! Seriously, who would believe something like that?"

* * *

_Meanwhile__…_

A Hylian Guard sighed. "How many people are coming?"

"Oh, about 200 of them." Another estimated, watching a lot of people running toward them.

"YOU CAN'T STOP ALL OF US!" A Hylian yelled.

"…I'll get the cannons." A third guard said and walked off.

"I'll get the crossbows."

The first Hylian Guard sighed again. "I hate gossip columns."

* * *

_Back in the Twilight Realm__…_

"Come to think of it, they're probably doing it right now. Wonder how many Hylians will die." Midna mused. "I'll bet it'll be a lot!"

"Midna. _Focus.__" _Ganondorf scowled at him.

"Fine, fine… whatever." Midna rolled her eyes. "So, you want the Power of Summoning? What, pray tell, do you need that for?"

"To stop Link." Zelda told her. "It's to save Hyrule."

"Let me guess, it's all part of Ganondorf's _wonderful _prophecy." Midna said.

"I'll have you know that Kotake and Koume are not wrong with their visions." Ganondorf said.

"They're like 500 years old or something, they're probably senile at this point!" Midna said. "What's next, they're gonna prophesy that you can play games wherever you go in a small rectangular box? That'll never catch on. Face it, they oughta be put out in the pasture at this point for their sake."

"Don't you _dare _talk about my two grandmothers like that!" Ganondorf snarled.

"Break it up!" Nabooru yelled.

"No… I'm not doing this for some prophecy. I'm doing it on my terms." Zelda said. "I'm going to try and prove Ganondorf wrong that this prophecy is wrong. I am going to save Link, whatever it takes."

"Ah! I like your fire!" Midna grinned as she stood up, and then walked over Zant's back to walk over to Zelda.

"Ow… my back…" Zant groaned.

"Kid, I like you." Midna said. "Tell me, is there more to you than what I'm seeing?"

"I have the power of the Goddesses on my side."

"Show me." Midna folded her arms. "…Oooh, but first!" She grabbed Zant. "Use this guy as a punching bag!"

"ACK! NO NO NO NO NO!"

"I know what he almost did to you… but it feels wrong to do this to him."

"Phew…"

"Hmm… ah!" Midna snapped her fingers. "Picture Zant as anyone who you hate."

"WHAT?!"

"I don't necessarily hate anyone."

"But who about Link? He's frustrating you at the moment, right?"

"Well, yeah…"

"Then give it all you got! Pretend Zant is Link!"

"Can we talk about this?"

"No."

"Aww…"

Zelda closed her eyes and aimed her hand at Zant, the hand bursting into flame. "Are you _sure _this is a good idea?" Groose asked. "I mean, we could just not do this."

"Where's the fun in that? Do it, Zelda!" Midna smirked.

Zelda clenched her fist. "I… I don't know if I should do this…"

"Phew…" Zant smiled. "Glad she's just a peasant girl and not some kind of war hero!"

_Peasant girl._

"For the last time, Link… IT'S COMMONER!" She screamed, unleashing Din's Fire on Zant, burning him alive.

"AIYEEEEEE!" Zant ran around screaming.

Zelda gasped. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that!"

Zant quickly jumped into a fountain and extinguished the flames, all the while Midna was laughing.

"Okay! I've seen enough! That was so good!" Midna giggled. "Alright, I have something for you."

"Let me guess, it's another dungeon we have to go through." Groose said.

"Technically… no." Midna replied. "It's just one room, but it's really dangerous."

"How bad can it be?" Groose said.

"We've dealt with countless dangerous encounters before. Why should this be any different?" Zelda asked.

"Alright, if you really want to do this, I'm not stopping you." Midna said and then walked out of her palace with the rest of them following her as they walked toward a dome shaped building. "This building only holds one room, it is called the Shadow Room. To the Twili, the Shadow Room is a place of meditation and tranquility. To non-Twili, it is their own personal hell."

"That bad?" Zelda asked.

"Yes. Believe me, the last non-Twili who did this perished, but I'm not saying what happened. It's too gruesome to explain the details." Midna turned to Zelda. "Once you beat your own personal hell, you'll be able to have the Power of Summoning. Are you sure you want to do this?"

Zelda nodded. "Hyrule is counting on me."

"Don't say I didn't warn you." She said as she opened the door as Zelda walked in, closing it behind her. "Good luck… you're gonna need it."

"Is she going to be okay?" Groose asked.

"It depends on if she's willing to go through with it or not."

* * *

_Inside__…_

Zelda walked along a corridor, noting that the place was far bigger on the inside before she came across a lone room, filled with torches filled with flame, a pedestal was on the opposite side of the room, a meditation rug was in front of Zelda, and there was an indoor waterfall where the water filled the cracks and surrounded the area inside. 'Pretty.' Zelda thought as she stepped through the cracks and onto the meditation rug.

"Own personal hell?" Zelda whispered.

_"__Something feels off…" _Fi said from within the sword.

"She's probably just messing with me." Zelda said as she took another step, and then suddenly, the doorway behind her slammed shut with a metal gate. "Huh?!"

_"__We're not alone…"_

Zelda put her hand on the hilt, ready for action. "Where are you…" She whispered.

_Link would never do something like this__… __he's possessed by the Triforce of Power…_

"Who said that?!"

_Link is my best friend__… __he wouldn't do something like this! _

"Show yourself!"

_Link, you need to get the Triforce of Power out of you, you__'__ve been possessed! _

"What do you want with me?!"

_Link is not a lost cause! _

Suddenly, the flames on the torches extinguished and reignited as a black flame, the waterfall turned scarlet and poured out blood, and the meditation rug started filling with darkness as it crept up to her feet which Zelda noticed looking down. "What the?!" She exclaimed as she tried to kick it off but it was to no avail as the darkness filled the entire room before it started consuming Zelda, as the darkness started to sting her. "Nnngh! Mmmph…! Nnngh… AAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

* * *

"Zelda!" Groose exclaimed.

"I'm going in there!" Ganondorf said, reaching for the door but Midna stopped him.

"Don't. This is her battle. Not yours."

* * *

Zelda woke up, finding herself in a strange area. "Where am I…?" She wondered, seeing that she was standing in water as she saw a lone dead tree in front of her as she walked over to it curiously. Once she got to the tree, she stared at it before looking around. "Hello? HELLO!" She called, her voice echoing.

"Zelda."

Zelda turned around and saw Link approaching her. "Link! What are you doing here?" She asked, but Link didn't say anything. "Link… please tell me the truth. Are you possessed by the Triforce of Power?"

"No… no I'm not. I'm not possessed at all." He said.

"Then… you killed your father in your own volition?!"

"No, I didn't kill my father. He was murdered by someone else."

Zelda breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness. That's such a relief."

"DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!" A voice yelled as Zelda turned around to see Aryll approaching her. "He's no brother of mine! He's no best friend either! He's a murderer! Don't listen to his lies!"

"What? But… Link would never-"

_"__Link would never do anything wrong. How cute." _

"Huh?!"

Darkness started forming in front of Zelda until it formed into a dark version of herself, complete with red glowing eyes. "Ah, young love, always willing to look past the glaring answers."

"Who are you?!"

"Why, I'm you, of course. The inner self that you've been dismissing. _The truth.__"_

"The truth? What do you mean by-"

"Open your eyes for one Hylian damned second!" Dark Zelda exclaimed. "Do you even see what Link is doing to you? He's a manipulative bastard!"

"I… I wouldn't say something like that!"

"Then why are you running from the truth? I'm the part of you that believes that Link is a lost cause, it's about time you learned not to run away from the truth." Dark Zelda said. "If you keep running from it, you'll just drown yourself in lies!" She said, when Zelda suddenly started sinking in the water.

"Ack! Wh-what is this…?!" She exclaimed as she struggled to get out, but couldn't.

"The more you struggle, the deeper you sink in. That's what you've been doing this whole time. He killed his family, he almost murdered his sister, he nearly murdered _YOU, _but what do you do? You look past that, thinking "Oh, he's just possessed by the Triforce of Power, he wouldn't really do this!" Lies… nothing but _LIES. _All you do is lie to yourself so Link isn't really the monster that he truly is!"

"He… he's not!" Zelda exclaimed, desperately trying to struggle until she was up to her neck.

"There you go again. Mr. Perfect, your best friend, the man who can do no wrong. He's been having an agenda since the beginning. Remember the time you two were kids? What did Link say again?" She asked before turning herself into a younger version of Link.

"When I'm king, things are gonna be different around here. I'm gonna change Hyrule for the better! I've had it with what my pops is doing, I'm gonna show him how things are DONE!" Link's voice echoed before changing back into Dark Zelda.

"He's been having an agenda since he was a kid. He _resented _his father from the beginning, but he was playing innocent. What did you say again? Oh that's right, you just laughed it off and didn't think Link had what it takes to be a dictator because, "He's too kind to be a dictator". Oh, and don't get me _started _on when you spotted him peeping on older ladies in the women's bathhouse! What did you say again? Oh that's right. 'Boys will be boys'." Dark Zelda spat. "You didn't even bat an eye, you didn't even _SCOLD HIM _because you believed he was still good! Your best friend has been deteriorating into a degenerate, but you refused to see it. You thought it was just a phase that he'll quickly get out of, and while he eventually did, the townspeople thought less of him when they found out… everyone but _you. _A childhood friend believes that a friend like him wouldn't change? Please. Don't make me laugh… oh, and then there's the time you found out you were on a wanted poster but dismissed it because you thought it was just a JOKE."

Zelda had fully sunk into the water, desperately trying to swim out but finding herself sinking deeper and deeper.

"You're in an ocean full of lies and you refuse to get out. You _refuse _to see the truth." Dark Zelda said. "The way you're going, you'll never get out of this ocean of lies."

Zelda tried to swim, but kept sinking lower and lower as she struggled for air, but then her feet touched the ground and found that she could breathe again, but it was very difficult for her as she winced and then her chest started hurting. "Nngh… why… hah… why is my chest… hurting…?" She asked.

"The truth hurts, doesn't it? Yet, you don't want to admit it." Dark Zelda reappeared in front of her. "You'll see one way or the other!" She quickly grabbed her by the neck, as Zelda tried to pry herself out and then noticed that her dark self had changed into Link, and then Dark Zelda appeared next to Link. "Would a best friend want to kill you?" Link slammed Zelda into the ground. "Would a best friend want to harm you?" Link kicked her away. "Would a best friend go out of his way to murder your parents?"

Zelda tried to get up. "He'd… he'd never… how did you…"

"When you returned to Kakariko and slept in your bed, you overheard Impa and Paya talking behind your door about debating whether or not they should tell you that Link murdered your family, but you denied it because that's something he'd never do. _RIGHT?!__" _Dark Zelda glared as Link pinned Zelda down and held his sword to her chest. "Would a best friend… PUT YOU ON A WANTED POSTER?! Or better yet… _WANT YOU DEAD AND HAVE A GUARDIAN HUNT YOU DOWN IN HYRULE FIELD?! WOULD A BEST FRIEND DO THAT?!__" _

Link lowered his sword but Zelda kicked him off of him as she grabbed her shield and blocked the attacks that Link was throwing at him. "Lies… it's all LIES!" Zelda yelled.

"STOP BLOCKING THE TRUTH!" Dark Zelda yelled, as the Hylian Shield disappeared as she gasped, then Link quickly impaled Zelda in the gut. "Would a best friend… kill you in cold blood?"

Link disappeared along with the sword, as Zelda fell on her knees, holding on to her "wound". "Think back on what your friends said about him." Dark Zelda said. "They all see the truth… so why can't you see it?"

"It… it's because he…"

Dark Zelda groaned, rolling her eyes and grabbed Zelda on the shoulders before slapping her on the cheek. "STOP SAYING THAT!" She screamed. "YOU KNOW VERY WELL THAT LINK IS EVIL! Fi can see it, Groose can see it, Ganondorf, Midna, everyone who we've met on our journey! They all believe the same thing! Link has gone off the deep end… he wanted the Triforce all to himself, he WANTS to run Hyrule into the ground, and he WANTS you DEAD because he sees you as a threat to his mission! The Triforce of Power just added fuel to the fire, not possessing him in any way. He was obsessed with power _way _before he got his hands on the Triforce! Link. Is. Gone. Can't you see that?"

Tears started forming in Zelda's eyes. "I… I…."

Dark Zelda sighed. "The truth hurts, but it sets you free. You're finding it hard to breathe because you're drowning in a sea of lies. You're lying to yourself because you think there's still some good left in him, but there isn't. Repeat after me. Link is gone."

"Link… is… goo-"

Dark Zelda slapped her again. "Say it correctly."

"Link…" Tears fell from her eyes. "Link is… gone…"

Suddenly, there was some light that filled up the dark abyss. "Keep saying it."

"Link is… gone… gone…. Link is gone…" Zelda sobbed, the dark abyss kept filling with light. "Link is gone… Link is gone…"

"That's it… keep saying it!" Dark Zelda said, hearing Zelda keep repeating the words over and over until the duo were back in the Shadow Room, Zelda's shield having returned. "The truth has set you free… didn't it?"

Zelda silently sobbed, tears hitting the ground and then tilted her head back to look at her dark self. "My best friend… is truly gone…" She whispered before starting to cry loudly.

Dark Zelda said nothing but snapping her fingers as the room turned back to the way it was, the flames turning orange, the water back to its original color. "You have fought a very deep and personal battle… but it's just getting started." She said. "Your best friend is truly gone, and all you have to do now… is to end him. It is the only way to win this war."

"Zelda!" A voice yelled as Dark Zelda looked up and saw Groose and Ganondorf running in, both of them being worried for the young woman while Nabooru and Midna were trying to stop them, but they all stopped once they saw Dark Zelda. "Who… who are you?!" Groose asked, unsheathing his sword.

"Stop." Dark Zelda ordered. "I am just her inner self making her see the truth."

"Truth? What is this truth that you speak of?" Ganondorf demanded.

"My best friend… he's truly gone…" Zelda quietly said, sounding broken.

"She sounds… WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!" Groose yelled.

"Making her see the truth, something that should have happened long ago." Dark Zelda said and put her hand on Zelda's palm. "The Power of Summoning… you'll be summoning a Phantom, and it will do Phantom Slash." She said, watching a purple aura surround Zelda's hand. "My work here is done." She said and put her hand on Zelda's head. "I'll be within you once more." She said and slowly disappeared until she was completely gone.

"Get her back to Gerudo Castle. Now." Ganondorf said as Groose picked her up bridal style and they rushed out, with Midna right behind her.

_An hour later__…_

Zelda had sat down on a couch, looking depressed. "Was it true what she said?" Groose asked after they've given her some space for a while.

"…It's true…" Zelda said, some tears still falling.

"She was fighting her inner demons." Midna said, leaning on a wall with her arms folded. "She was fighting herself. She wanted to fight the truth, but it overwhelmed her. Now she fully realizes who Link truly is." She turned to Zelda. "Dry your tears, this is no time to be crying. You can cry when the tyranny is over."

"Midna! After all she's been through, she deserves to grieve!" Nabooru scolded.

"No… she's right…" Zelda stood up, wiping her tears. "I need to stop crying over the truth… and have it be by my side." She said. "Link is gone… and I'm going to make sure he doesn't get away with this."

Ganondorf smiled. "That's great to hear."

Zelda turned to Groose. "Groose, we're leaving. We need to head to Lake Hylia to find this girl in the clouds."

"Right." Groose nodded.

Zelda turned to the others. "I don't know why, but I have this feeling I'll be needing all of you when the time comes to face him."

"And we will gladly join you." Nabooru said.

"We'll do it together." Ganondorf said as Zelda nodded.

"Right. Let's go." She said as Groose nodded and walked off, both of them getting back on Epona and took off.

* * *

_Meanwhile__…_

"Why should I believe you?" Link asked, his arms folded.

"Well, you see, I know where the girl and your sister are currently living. They live in Kakariko, and I know where it is. My clan members will show you where it is." The stranger said, whistling as some Yiga Clan members appeared with a map and showed him where it is.

"Kakariko Village is right there?"

"Yes… but there's something that you should know."

"What is it?"

"Zelda is not there at the moment, she's on a personal journey to get rid of you."

"Hmph, can't say I'm surprised." Link grumbled. "But my sister lives there?"

"Yes… and I've a feeling Zelda will return soon."

"I see…" Link folded his arms. "Now I know where those traitors live. What did you say your name was again?"

"I go by many names, but you may call me Master Kohga."

"Alright, the time is at hand. Storm Kakariko Village and kill everyone in sight once Zelda returns." Link smirked.

"Actually… I have a better idea."

"Oh? What do you have in mind?"

"Oh, don't worry. Leave it all to me."

* * *

**I've been wanting to do a dark version of Zelda for a long time, and then I thought "Hey, wait a second. What if Dark Zelda is the part of her that knows Link is evil and gets after Zelda for running away from the truth? Sometimes, are you need is a little push from your inner self.**

**Also, that Area 51 joke? It had to be done. **


	13. Breaking Point

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

Zelda rode Epona silently as she was looking through the Sheikah Slate. "Zelda… are you okay?" Groose asked once they got out of the Gerudo Desert, but Zelda wasn't responding. "Zelda?"

_"__It is most likely that she just needs some space." _Fi said within the sword.

"I don't really know what went on in there. Ganondorf and I were worried and went in despite Nabooru and Midna telling us not to intervene. We heard her screaming and we just couldn't bear it any longer."

_"__That would make sense. Even I would be worried if I wasn't with my master."_

"Exactly."

_"__Still, I think it would be best if you let her be. She had just fought her inner demons and finally accepted the truth. She had been running away from it for so long that once she finally grasped it, it took a lot out of her."_

"What's so special about this Link guy anyway?" Groose asked. "I mean, the guy's a total jerk from what I've heard."

_"__Best not to say it out loud." _

"…Oops." Groose whispered and looked at Zelda, but it looked like she was in her own world. "Sounds like she didn't hear me."

_"__She has a lot on her mind right now. Best to leave her be."_

"Alright…" Groose sighed.

Zelda looked through the map as they were heading for Lake Hylia, but she couldn't focus, and why wouldn't she? Her fight with her dark self made her see the light and made her realize that her best friend is a straight up jerk, not to mention all the times he almost had her killed. Everyone was right, the Triforce of Power wasn't corrupting him at all. Link was corrupted from the very beginning but she couldn't see it until it was too late.

King Rhoam and the queen are dead, with Zelda witnessing the latter's demsie, Aryll was wrongly accused and thrown in jail, Link became the new ruler, she and Aryll were nearly killed hadn't Impa intervened, the goddess Hylia sent her on a mission to save Hyrule from Link, everyone explaining to Zelda that Link isn't corrupted by the Triforce of Power at all, Ganondorf telling her about a prophecy, her dark self making her see the light, all of Hyrule rests on her shoulders… saying that Zelda was under a lot of stress is a huge understatement.

Adding on to the fact that she now admitted that her best friend is truly gone is making her heart ache terribly. She loved him so much and watching him deteriorate into a complete mad man and she did nothing about it… she wished that she could've done something and have him choose a different path instead of choosing the path of evil. Now all of Hyrule will pay for it if she doesn't do something about it.

_"__Zel… da…"_

Something must be done about this, but what? She was wracking her brain for answers on what to do. Maybe she can still save him and not put an end to him.

_"__Zelda…"_

Would that be good enough? What would be the true answer? Killing Link is the last thing she wants to do, but…

"ZELDA!"

"Huh, what?! What?!" Zelda snapped out of it and looked both ways before turning to Groose. "What is it?!" She asked, looking completely startled.

"We're here."

"Huh?" Zelda turned to see that they were at Lake Hylia. "Oh… oh my goodness, we're actually here!" She smiled. "That's a relief."

"Are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I'm totally okay."

Groose didn't look convinced. "O… kay, if you say so." He said as they wandered on the Hylian Bridge, when suddenly they were ambushed by several Lizalfos that jumped from the lake to the bridge. "Oh crud!"

"Lizalfos?!" Zelda exclaimed as they got off of Epona and were ready to fight, although Groose was more ready to fight. Zelda had her grip on the Master Sword and was ready to fight while equipping the Hylian Shield, but unlike Groose, she wasn't focused and her grip was loose on the sword. Because of this, Fi got a little worried.

_"__Master, your grip isn't tight enough."_

"I'm fine, I can handle this!" Zelda said and started slashing at the Lizalfos, but she found herself quickly overwhelmed by the Lizalfos as some of them tried to take Epona for a joyride, but she wasn't having any of this and bucked them off of her and kicked them in the face, letting out an annoyed snort.

"Zelda! Get it together! This isn't like you!" Groose yelled, cutting down a Lizalfos with ease while Zelda was overwhelmed.

"Nnngh! I can… handle it!" Zelda exclaimed, but a Lizalfos kicked her down. "Mmph!" She grunted as she fell on her back as the Lizalfos went in for the kill, when suddenly a large wave of bubbles knocked them away and Zelda opened her eyes to see Mipha impaling a Lizalfos with her Trident before slamming it down to create a torrent of water from it that knocked all the Lizalfos off of the bridge.

"You okay?" Mipha asked, reaching a hand out for Zelda.

"Yeah." Zelda smiled and took her hand as the Zora Queen pulled her up. "Thanks, your highness."

"Anytime." Mipha smiled. "But, let me ask you again. Are _you _okay?" She asked.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Really? Because you don't sound fine."

Groose approached her. "Two questions. One-"

"If you're wondering how I was able to save you, I was actually having a leisurely swim in the lake when I heard the commotion from above. Then I heard "Zelda" and I quickly rushed in to save the both of you."

"…Okay, now I have one question. How do you even know Zelda's not feeling alright?"

"Call it intuition." Mipha smiled before turning to Zelda, placing her hands on her shoulder. "Please tell me, it'll be okay."

Zelda sighed. "I… I finally came to realize that the king of Hyrule isn't such a great person after all. My best friend that I loved and… I can't…"

Mipha nodded at Zelda, gently giving her a hug. "It's going to be okay. You'll get through this." She told her.

"I hope so…" Zelda quietly said, slowly returning the hug.

Mipha parted the hug. "So, tell me, there has got to be a reason why you're going through Lake Hylia. I doubt it's anything casual."

"We're actually looking for a cannon that will take us to somewhere in the sky."

"Oh! I know where it is. Follow me!" Mipha said as she dove into the water, then she rose to the top with a watery vortex underneath her. "Come on!" She said and went off, as the duo got back on Epona and followed her across the bridge until they were at the middle when Mipha dove underneath and reached the right side of the bridge where she and a few Zoras popped out a cannon out of the water. "Ta-dah!"

"Ooooh! Fancy. I didn't think something like that would be underneath Lake Hylia!" Groose exclaimed.

"We keep it well hidden inside the lake so no curious swimmer would spot it and abuse it." A Zora said as they made their way down toward the cannon while a Zora kept Epona at bay.

"We'll take care of your horse for ya!" Another Zora waved.

"So, is this safe?" Groose asked as they were climbing in.

"Yes, it should be safe… for the most part." A third Zora said, earning an elbow to the gut from Mipha. "Ooof! I was joking!"

"Ignore him, it's perfectly safe." Mipha said as she put her hands on the cord. "…I hope." She said and pulled it.

Zelda immediately looked concerned. "What do you mean you-"

**BOOM!**

"HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Not even you had faith in it, huh?" A Zora asked.

"I'm not sure when was the last time we used it."

"I think we last used this… about a century ago when we were at war with the Gorons."

"No no no, It was fifty years ago when it was our turn to commence the Hyrulian Festival."

"You dummies, it was last used by the late King Zora the II, which was five decades ago! …Took him a long time to get him to move since he would do nothing but sit and scoot around."

"Sooooo, none of you know when it was last used?" Mipha asked.

"Nope!"

Mipha sweatdropped. "Oh dear."

* * *

_With the two__…_

The duo kept screaming as they went through the clouds, but they saw something up ahead. "Hey, what's that?!" Groose asked during their screaming.

"I DON'T KNOOOOOW!" Zelda yelled as they kept closing in until they landed right on some grass. "Oooof!"

Groose slid a few feet near Zelda but he got back up. "We made it! We're alive! …I think. Are we dead?"

Zelda looked over the edge and saw nothing but clouds, paling at the sight. "Um… I think so! I think the Zoras blew us up!"

"Well… this was not how I was picturing the other side to look like." Groose said. "It's so… run down."

Zelda turned around and saw the small town. "What is this place?"

"I dunno, but I'm pretty sure we're dead."

_"__I can assure you…" _Fi popped out of the sword. "That there is a 100% chance that we are still alive."

"Oh thank Hylia." Zelda sighed with relief.

"Phew…" Groose smiled. "Do you know where we are?"

"This was where the Master Sword was born. It was originally called the Goddess Sword, before it had turned into the Master Sword."

Zelda unsheathed the Master Sword. "This thing?"

"Yes. There was another one like this, but it was corrupted by evil. It was wielded by the evil incarnate himself, Demise. Luckily, he was defeated along with the spirit inside of the sword. I am 99.9% sure that the sword no longer exists."

"There was another like you? Who was it?" Groose asked.

"Ghirahim. Let's just say he was… _interesting.__" _Fi said. "I'll leave it at that."

"Okay." Zelda nodded and then they walked around. "Was this place always like this? Rundown and destroyed?"

"No. It used to be bustling, but things changed over the years before no one longer lived above the clouds."

"I can't imagine this place being bustling. Who would want to live in a dump like this?" Groose asked as they kept walking.

"I am sensing something within the shrine up ahead." Fi quietly said as she guided them toward a shrine.

"I feel like there was a lot more to this place." Zelda mused.

"There was a Goddess Statue here, but it was used to help block The Imprisoned from escaping into Hyrule." Fi explained.

"Oooh, okay." Zelda nodded as Fi guided them to the shrine.

"I am not sure who lives here now, but I am 95% sure that she is friendly." She said and then went back into the sword, and they walked into the shrine.

In there, they saw a woman meditating on a mat. She opened her eyes and saw them. "Oh! I knew you'd come!"

"You did?" Groose asked, slowly reaching for his sword. "Is that a fact?"

The woman nodded. "Mhm!" She noticed him reaching for the sword. "Be at ease, I am not a threat."

Zelda turned to Groose. "It's okay. Lower your weapon."

"If you say so…" Groose loosened his grip and folded his arms instead. "Who are you?"

"I am called Lana. My home is with the goddesses, but I usually spend my time here in Skyloft. I look after it after everyone left long ago. Hylia had told me that you would be coming." She explained.

Fi popped out of the sword. "Forgive me, but I did not recognize you." She said. "I was not sure of whom we were meeting were interested in good or evil."

Lana giggled. "That's fine, don't worry about it!" She smiled and then got up. "Alright, let's go take care of that problem in Hyrule!"

Groose nodded. "Way ahead of you!'

_That was fast... _Zelda thought. "It's strange. Hylia told me to befriend you before I received more instructions from her, but I was expecting it to be harder."

"Nah, anyone who gains favor of the goddesses is a friend of mine!" Lana grinned and then thought of something. "Oh! That reminds me!" She turned to the clouds and whistled, as a majestic black bird came flying in. The weird part was that it had a pompadour similar to Groose.

"Whoa! What is that thing?" Zelda asked.

"It's a Loftwing. I've been raising them, although it seems like only the black one wanted to come." She mused, as it started nuzzling against Groose. "Aww, he likes you!"

Groose laughed. "Yeah, he sure does!"

"Do you want to ride him?"

"Sure."

"Riding him is easy!" Lana said as Groose got on him as the Loftwing spread his wings and started flying.

"Whoa! WHOA! WHOOOOOOOA!"

"That's it! Nice and easy! Be one with the Loftwing!"

"EASY FOR YOU TO SAY!"

Lana chuckled. "He'll be fine." She said before turning to Zelda. "Hmm? Something troubling you?"

"...No."

"Oh come on, you can tell me. Besides, I can see it in your eyes."

Zelda sighed. "Fine, you want the truth?" She looked directly at Lana, her eyes screaming "stress" in them. "My life has been turned upside down to the point where it feels like it's never going to end! My best friend gradually goes off the deep end, he kills his parents while killing his mother in front of my eyes, he falsely accuses his own sister and by the time I've recovered from seeing the queen fall to her death in front of my eyes, I see Link about to kill his sister while also confirming that he killed his family, he nearly kills me when I confront him, I get dragged to Kakariko to protect my life, then the goddess decides to freaking ask me to go on a mission to save Hyrule, I nearly get killed by a damned Goron that loves breaking people's backs, I get the Master Sword and the three items from the goddesses then after I go back to Kakariko to rest, I'm thrown right back into this mess!"

"Oh, wow, that's-"

"Oh, I'm not done yet! I go to Gerudo Town to find out there's a Hylian damned prophecy from Ganondorf that I'm the one who has to kill Link, then I'm freaking thrown into the Twili Realm and meet the Twilight Queen who takes great pleasure in messing with her subject and then I'm forced to freaking confront the truth in the form of my dark self... and now I'm here!"

"So, it's just been a wild Loftwing ride?"

"Oh, you don't know the half of it! This whole mess is, pardon my language, a huge pile of horseshit! And to think NONE of this would've happened if I had just saw the signs with my best friend when we were kids! He wanted to be a conquerer and I thought nothing of it! So guess who's fault is this?! Me! Because I didn't SEE the signs! I didn't stop him and talked him out of it! If I done that, none of this would be happened, but no, I have to be the one to kill my Hylian damned best friend all because of me being stupid and being madly in love with him because I was so blind that I never SAW the horseshit that Link would drag me through! So yeah, I'm under a lot of damn stress if you didn't realize!"

She stood there panting after her long rant before chuckling a little. "It's all my fault... It's all my freaking fault..." She unsheathed the Master Sword. "Why... Just why... WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE ME?!" She screamed, throwing the Master Sword toward the pond... before she fell on her knees and started sobbing loudly. "Why..."

Lana said nothing but knelt down next to Zelda and hugged her. "You've been through a lot, haven't you?"

"Yes..."

Lana hugged her still. "You kept all of this bottled up..."

"I'm not sure what to do... Do I go and kill my best friend, or... do I let Hyrule fall from his rule... what am I supposed to do?!" She asked through her sobbing.

"What do you really want to do?"

"I want... I want to save Hyrule and Link, but... I can't..."

"It's hard, I know... you're faced with a difficult task and you don't know what to do. My only advice is to stand up and fight. You do have a difficult fight ahead of you.. and this may sound difficult to hear, but the only way to save Link is to kill him. Save him from the corruption by putting an end to him. It's the only way."

"But I..."

"I know. It will be hard. I know what it's like to fight a loved one. It wasn't easy... but in the end, it was finished. I made Cia see the error of her ways after defeating her and now she's become one with me again. I could go into what happened, but it's kind of hard to explain."

Zelda sniffed a bit. "How is that supposed to make me feel better? It feels like the entire journey is on my shoulders..."

"It doesn't have to be! You can share the weight with your friends. I'm sure they'll be willing to share the burden with you. Give you plenty of room to breathe!" She smiled.

"...How can you be so happy when Hyrule is falling apart and I'm too busy venting..."

"Lanayru asked me the same thing a few centuries ago... Trust me, you're not the first one to ask me." She stood up and helped Zelda up. "Come on, give me a smile!"

Zelda looked at Lana and gave her a forced smile.

"No no no, a _real _one. One that reaches your eyes!" Lana said, using her fingers to force Zelda's mouth into a smile. "There! Reaches your eyes!"

At this point, Zelda started laughing legitimately to the point she was in tears again by Lana's little stunt. "Oh Hylia..."

"There, now your eyes are sparkling!" Lana giggled. "So, what are you going to do?"

"Face Link... even if it kills me. Save Hyrule."

"Uh-huh, and what else?"

"Share the burden with my friends."

"Mhm! What else?"

"...Smile more?"

"Aaaaaand?"

"I'm not sure what else."

"How about owing me an apology?" A voice asked as Zelda turned to see Fi dripping wet and holding a drenched Master Sword. "I understand you were stressed, but did you have to do that?"

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Fi! I won't do it again, promise!"

"Here's hoping." Fi said and handed Zelda the Master Sword.

"Alright, now what are you gonna do?" Lana asked.

Zelda walked over to the edge of Skyloft and took a deep breath, before taking the sword and grabbing her hair and cutting it off, making her hair shorter. "Moving on from this agonizing pain that I've been feeling."

Lana sweatdropped. "I wasn't expecting that, but okay. Glad you didn't like cut the grass with it or something."

Groose then returned after Fi returned into the Master Sword. "That was awesome! What did I miss?"

"We're going back to Kakariko and figure out what to do next. We are going to stop Link!" Zelda said, her voice now chipper than before.

"Huh? Who are you and what did you to Zelda?" Groose asked.

Zelda laughed. "Whatever do you mean?" She winked.

"Alright, let's head back down to Hyrule!" Lana said as they nodded.

* * *

_One trip later..._

Groose landed at Lake Hylia. "Whoo! That was fun." Groose said. "I think I found my new steed!"

Zelda laughed. "That's great to hear." She got back on Epona who was grazing the field.

"Let's go!" Lana grinned.

"Zelda!" A voice yelled as they turned to see Paya running toward them, looking worried. "Oh thank Hylia, I was looking everywhere for you!"

"What's wrong?" Zelda asked.

"It's... It's Aryll! We were ambushed suddenly and the Yiga Clan took Aryll!"

"WHAT?!"

"They took her to their hideout in Gerudo Valley!"

"Let's go!" Zelda said.

"Hold on a second, the Sheikah are smarter than this! They always anticipate an ambush in Kakariko, they'd be prepared! Something's up..." Lana mused.

"We can worry about that later. Let's go, yah!" Zelda said, as Epona took off with Lana hitching a ride and Groose flew while Paya ran with them, completely aware of Lana giving her a dirty look.

* * *

**If it's called the Battle of the Lion and Eagle, then why are the Golden Deer involved... It's weird. Eh, I'll figure it out when I get to the battle itself.**

**But seriously, I want to hug Bernadetta so baaaaaaaad. ;-;**

**Anyway, we got a Smash thing in a few hours! Dragon Quest hype! (22 minutes though... It can't JUST be all about Hero and the stage...)**


	14. Infiltrating the Hideout

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

"Where's the hideout?" Zelda asked as they got back into Gerudo Valley.

"It's over here!" Paya said, guiding them to the hideout.

"You sure you know where you're going?" Groose asked.

"Yup! I've been there a few times myself, so I know where it is."

"Awesome!"

"Yeah, we wouldn't know what we would've done if you weren't here with us!" Zelda smiled.

_Not falling for an obvious trap, for one. _Lana thought as they kept walking toward the hideout until they got to the hill.

"This is the place." Paya said.

"Good, now let's storm in." Zelda said.

"Whoa whoa whoa! We can't go in there swords blazing! We have to sneak in." Groose suggested.

Zelda blushed a little. "Whoops…"

"Personally, I say we go in with a birds eye view." Groose said. "Locate Aryll, sneak on in, grab her and take off while avoiding the archers. It's foolproof!"

"Bad idea." Lana shook her head. "I've seen plenty of people try to take on archers with their Loftwings but they both end up getting killed."

"Why, because they suck at dodging?"

"No. You see, arrows travel faster than you might think. While it is possible that you can dodge an arrow on the ground… it's a whole different story in the air. While trying to hit a Loftwing in the air with any kind of weapon or magic is difficult, arrows are a different story. Arrows can fly swiftly into the air and is most likely to hit a flying target, there's also the fact that, while airborne, it's tricky to dodge something flying toward you because you have little time to react to an arrow flying at you in the air."

"You're bluffing."

"Oh, really. Have you seen a Pegasus flying around Hyrule?"

"What's a Pegasus?"

_"__Exactly." _Lana smirked. "A Pegasus is basically a flying horse. Swift in the air, nimble as can be… and a bunch of morons took them to battle against archers alongside Loftwings. You can figure out the rest."

"So, what you're saying is… there's a chance?"

"If by 'chance', you mean getting you and your flying steed killed by an archer, then yes. There's no guarantee of success. It's because of this that I strongly don't recommend taking a Loftwing to an armed fortress that will most likely have archers."

"I'm taking that the Pegasus are… extinct?" Zelda quietly asked.

"If you want to be technical, the plural form of Pegasus is Pegasi… but yes, it is unfortunate… no one thought about breeding a Pegasus to have the species flourish. Nope! They all thought "oh, a flying horse! We can take this to battle and gain the upper hand!" and got themselves and the Pegasi killed. No flying creature can out fly an arrow. It's impossible."

"…Alright, alright, we won't go for a bird's eye view." Groose said.

"Thank you. Now, let's go in." Lana said.

"Right." Zelda nodded and looked around. "Hey, where'd Paya go?"

"Hmm, where do you think?" Lana asked.

"The intruders are here! Take 'em down!"

"We'll worry about that later." Zelda said as she quickly transformed into Sheik and then ran over, quickly dodging the arrows coming to her as she jumped over and used Bouncing Fish to knock a Yiga back before throwing needles at him to KO him, then turning around and kicking a female Yiga in the gut before doing a roundhouse kick to knock her back, then threw a needle at a male Yiga's neck before karate chopping his neck to knock him out and then turned to the others.

"What, am I going to do this all by myself?"

"No, it's just that you're way too fast for us." Groose sweatdropped as he and Lana joined up with Sheik as they infiltrated the hideout, quickly going up the steps and got to the first cell, noticing a skeleton inside.

"Obviously not this one. It's never the first cell." Sheik said.

"Poor guy or woman died in here… ouch." Groose whispered as they snuck around, noticing a Blademaster walking around and on guard, as Sheik pulled out a dagger and backstabbed the Blademaster to take him out.

"Wow, Zelda, I didn't know you had it in you!" Lana exclaimed.

"Honestly, I'm not the biggest fan of killing, but… given the circumstances, it's either kill or be killed." Sheik told her.

"That's understandable." Lana nodded as they kept going, where the trio hid behind a wall after checking some other cells that held no prisoners, where they saw a Blademaster in front of a doorway, guarding it.

"So how do we get past him? Assassinate him?" Groose asked.

"It seems like the only option." Sheik mused.

Lana turned around and looked behind the other portion of the wall. "Hold on… I have a better idea."

"Better than having Zelda turn the man's back into swiss cheese?" Groose asked.

"You do know you can call me Sheik in this form, right?"

"I know, but it takes a while getting used to."

"Shh!" Lana shushed him and pointed to a shelf that had some bananas. "Sheik, do you think you can knock those bananas down?"

"It's worth a shot." Sheik said, pulling out some needles and throwing them at the shelf, knocking all the bananas down. "I don't see how this-"

"Ooooooh! Bananas~!" The Blademaster exclaimed and happily walked over to them, having a spring in his step and looking around, chuckling uncontrollably and picking up the bananas. "Oh, happy day! Happy day! I love bananas!"

"HEY! You better share some of those bananas!" A Footsoldier yelled.

The Blademaster hissed. "Over my dead body!"

"Them's fightin' words! Have at thee!"

Sheik sweatdropped. "You. Can't. Be. Serious."

"Oh my… I wasn't expecting that kind of reaction!" Lana said

"…Obsession over bananas, of all things. Now I've seen everything." Groose sweatdropped as they snuck into the doorway while the two fought over the bananas, then they noticed four Blademasters walking around a large room, with several bananas above them.

"It can't seriously be this easy." Sheik sweatdropped and then fired some needles, knocking some bananas down.

"Mana from Hylia! Thank the goddesses!"

"Hey! You better share those!"

"I want some of those!"

"Share those with us or else!"

"No, they're mine! You hear me? MINE!"

"…This is just sad." Lana sighed as she aimed her hand at the four and fired a bolt of lightning at them to knock them out.

"Thanks for that." Sheik nodded as they went into another room and found that it was empty.

"Dead end, huh?" Groose asked. "We should probably head back and find a different route. We couldn't find Aryll in any of those cells."

"Hold on… there's more probably more to this room than meets the eye." Sheik said, closing her eyes to turn back into Zelda and pulled out her Sheikah Slate and then touched the Magnesis Rune. "Let's see… there's got to be a secret passage here somewhere." She said, scanning the area.

"I don't think there's anything metal here." Groose folded his arms. "Why don't we just head back and-"

"Bingo!" Zelda exclaimed as the Magnesis fired a beam toward the wall and then she pulled it as a secret door opened up.

"…Oh."

Lana giggled. "What do you know!" She grinned as the three of them walked out the door and found themselves outside with a large pit in the middle.

"Aryll! Where are you! Can you hear us? Hellooooo!"

"She's not here." A voice said as they turned to the source of the voice to see a large somewhat obese Yiga Clan member appearing in front of them. "That little Aryll is back at Kakariko, safe and sound… for now at least."

"Man, this is just priceless!" Another voice said as they turned to see Paya approaching them. "Link told us that you were naive, Zelda… but I didn't think you were _THIS _naive!"

"What? Link? What is the meaning of this?!" Zelda asked. "Paya, why are you-"

Paya smirked before turning into a Yiga Footsoldier. "I'm not Paya! I only disguised as her to trick you!"

"I _knew _it." Lana growled. "They sent us right into a trap."

"Who are you!" Zelda demanded to know, reaching for the Master Sword.

"I am Master Kohga, and if you want to know what is going on with Kakariko, let's just say my finest men nipped the bud in the flower of their security system. His Majesty should be arriving in Kakariko at any second."

Zelda growled. "So he sent us on a wild goose chase to get ourselves killed by you?"

"Precisely! He knows that you're a threat to him, so he decided to hand you over to me while he takes care of Kakariko Village."

Zelda clenched her fists before letting out a chuckle. "He's afraid of me, isn't he? He knows I've gotten stronger."

"No, he's playing smart. He's smart, so he knows what he's doing. By getting you away from Kakariko, the village is basically defenseless."

"Sooooo, he's afraid of Zelda." Lana guessed.

"No! I didn't say that!" Kohga said.

"Actually, the way His Highness was telling us about you, it sounded like he had fear in his voice." The footsoldier chimed in.

"NOT HELPING!" He yelled.

"Well… I suggest that once we take you down, we go have a little _chat _with an old friend of mine." Zelda smirked, almost laughing at the thought of Link quaking in his boots when Zelda arrived.

"Ah ah ah!" Kohga waggled his finger. "I wouldn't be so cocky. I am the leader of the Yiga Clan, and I will see to it that you are destroyed."

"With _that _gut? I doubt it." Groose said.

"Ohohoho, let me tell you something, my dear boy… I'm more than just a chubby Yiga, I'm really dangerous too!"

Zelda unsheathed the Master Sword. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's test you out."

"You're gonna regret this. HAVE AT THEE!" Kohga yelled before teleporting behind Zelda and kicking her a few feet.

"Nngh!" Zelda turned around and raised her sword in the air and used a Skyward Strike attack, but Kohga nimbly dodged it.

"Missed me~!" Kohga taunted.

"I should probably get in on the action too!" The footsoldier said, only to get zapped by lightning from Lana. "YAAAAGH!" He fell over after being shocked.

Zelda quickly turned into Sheik as she ran over and quickly did a Bouncing Fish attack, but Kohga caught her foot and threw her to the ground, then he summoned a boulder and threw it at her, only for her to roll out of the way as she quickly threw needles, but he quickly got them with both of his hands and chuckled, throwing them at Sheik as the needles nicked or impaled her. "Agh!" Sheik winced.

"You may have the powers of a Sheikah by your side, but that doesn't mean a thing to me!" He said as he teleported and kicked Sheik away while Lana quickly conjured up blocks and then she jumped between them before firing bolts of lightning at Kohga, zapping him. "Yagh!" He cried as Groose came running in and slashed him a few times before knocking him back, and then Sheik got back up and turned into Zelda, then using Din's Fire to hit him in the face. "GAH! Alright, that's it!" He growled and summoned a boulder, and then launched it at Zelda.

_"__Shield bash, now!" _Fi yelled from inside the Master Sword as Zelda quickly used a Shield Bash, timing it perfectly and sending the boulder back at Kohga, hitting him on the head.

"Ooof!" He grunted as he slid back a few feet and then started floating up. "Alright, you forced my hand!" He exclaimed as he summoned a metal ball and then conjured a shield around him as a lightning bolt hit him but it bounced back and forced Lana to jump to the side. "Ha ha ha! This is a magical shield, immune to your your silly magic attacks!" He taunted and threw it at them, but Zelda activated the Magnesis Rune and stopped it and tried to swing it back. "Yipe!" He exclaimed and stopped it, going into a power struggle.

"Oh, I don't think so." Groose said, pulling out his bow and arrow and then firing at his shoulder.

"Argh!" Kohga cried, losing the power struggle as Zelda quickly swung the metal ball, smacking him on his cheek and he was launched to a wall. "Nnngh… how is that possible… how did you get through my magic shield?!"

"You said it was magic, didn't you? Last I checked, arrows aren't magical at all!" Groose smirked.

"Urgh! I knew I should've conjured up a regular shield too!" He growled and then threw another boulder at Zelda, who shield bashed it and smacked him in the head to knock him down. "Gah!"

"I'll finish this." Zelda said, turning back into Sheik and running over to him, pulling out her dagger and when she got close, she started using the Sheikah Dance on him, slashing him in all directions before getting in front of him and slashed him away back to the others and then Sheik jumped over and put her dagger away, turning back into Zelda. "You had enough?"

"Heh… heheheh… I can't remember the last time I had a fight like this!" Kohga said and got up. "But now… you're making me use my trump card. Well played… but this is the end!" He laughed and clapped his hands together to summon a huge iron ball, as it landed between them. "Ahahaha… ah… huh… maybe that's just a tad _too _big. Are you still over there?"

"Uh… yeah?" Groose said from the other side.

"Hmph… it doesn't matter. Pretty soon you'll be gone… and not just from my line of sight!" He said, causing the trio to sweatdrop before Zelda walked forward and gently tapped it, causing it to roll. "Only the leader of the Yiga Clan… can use this technique! It is the ultimate-" He noticed it started to roll right toward him. "ACK! NO NO NO NO NO! STAY BACK! STAY BAAAAACK!" He yelled, panicking as he was flailing around and backing up… before he fell into the pit and the metal ball went right with him. "YOU COWAAAAAARDS! I SHALL BE REMEMBERED! HIS MAJESTY WILL AVENGE MEEEEEEEEEEE!"

**THUD!**

Lana winced. "Oooh, I don't think he'll get out of that."

"Come on, let's hurry." Zelda said as the two nodded and hurried back, getting on Epona and Groose getting on his Loftwing as they took off to Kakariko, and as they got closer, the sun had fully set and the moon started to rise. "Come on, we're almost there!" She exclaimed as they went into the passageway and saw an orange glow coming from a corner, along with some heavy smoke as they hurried in… and saw Kakariko in ruin… and on fire.

"No!" Groose exclaimed, all of them stopping in shock.

"Oh my Hylia…" Lana whispered.

"Impa! Aryll! We're coming!" Zelda yelled as they started to run, only for a laser to hit the ground near them, causing an explosion and sending them careening to the ground, Epona letting out a pained winny.

"Nnngh… everyone okay?!" Lana yelled, coughing a little.

"I'm fine! Epona needs to be looked at, though!" Groose yelled.

"I'm on it!"

Zelda got up, her ears still ringing as her vision blurred a bit as she was looking around, noticing Fi getting out of the Master Sword that was knocked off of her back. "…Aster… ster! …o… cus…" Fi called out to her as Zelda was trying to come to her senses as she noticed a Guardian coming toward her as her eyes widened, seeing it charge up its laser… and then Zelda's ears stopped ringing. "MASTER! FOCUS!" Fi yelled as Zelda hopped up to her feet and use Nayru's Love to quickly block the laser, sending the laser flying toward a Flying Guardian, hitting its propellers as it started dropping to the ground and hit a house, exploding on contact.

"Your shield! It fell off too!"

"Where is it?!" Zelda yelled, using Nayru's Love again to send the laser flying toward a Cucco Coop, hearing the sounds of Cuccos cawing in agony over this. "You find it, I'll keep this thing distracted!"

"Got it!" Fi nodded and flew off to find the Hylian Shield while Zelda pulled out her Crossbow and equipped a Bomb Arrow and shot it, hitting it directly in the eye to knock it back a bit and fired a laser at Zelda through the smoke in retaliation, hitting her.

"AGH!" Zelda screamed and slammed into a rock wall. "Nngh…!" She winced as she got up. "Fi, I could use a hand here!" She exclaimed, holding on to her arm.

"Here's your shield!" Fi tossed the shield over to Zelda, as she caught it and attempted to shield bash the laser, only she was off by a few seconds and hit her again, slamming her into the rock wall, but she got up, coughing out some blood as some blood trickled down her forehead and from her mouth. "You gotta time it right!"

"Gee! Ya think?!" Zelda yelled in annoyance and glared at the Guardian, as it charged up its laser and just when it was about to fire…

"NOW!" Fi yelled as Zelda prepared herself and swung her shield right as the laser made contact, sending the laser back and hitting the Guardian, as it stumbled back in surprise as she grabbed her Crossbow and reached for any arrow at her disposal, equipping it and noticing it was an Ancient Arrow.

"I'm not sure what good this will do… but here goes NOTHING!" She yelled, pulling the trigger as the Ancient Arrow fired while the Guardian charged its laser again, as the arrow hit it in the eye and the Guardian lit up and exploded shortly after. "…Huh… so that's what it does…" Zelda panted, falling on her butt and wiped the blood from her mouth.

"Here, drink this!" A voice said as she turned to see Lana handing her a green potion as she took it and drank it up, feeling refreshed.

"Thanks, Lana." Zelda got back up and noticed Epona getting up and shaking it off.

"I healed her up. You're welcome." Lana smiled.

"Come on, let's go see if Impa is alright!" Groose said as they nodded and took off to Impa's house, where Impa was seen holding off a Guardian as there were rubble and debris of destroyed Guardians near her as she dodged a laser and got into position and slashed through the Guardian, as it exploded behind her.

"Those who dare trespass on my home will be swiftly dealt with!" Impa declared, panting and then noticing the others. "About time you showed up… who's your friend?"

"Her name's Lana… but that's not the point. Where's Aryll?" Zelda asked.

"Right here!" A voice said as they saw Aryll peeking out from a bush. "I tried to hide in the house but it caught on fire, Impa got me out in time."

"What of Paya and Purah?"

"They're holding off on those wretched things that attacked us. They'll be fine." Impa said and looked around. "This was the Sheikah sanctuary for over a thousand years… and it was destroyed in just minutes… damn… who would've thought it would be destroyed so easily…"

"You can rebuild, right?" Groose asked.

"Yes… but we'll have to relocate. The enemy knows we're here… and I'm not sure how many casualties there are…" Impa muttered quietly, unaware of a hooded figure emerging from the bush nearby, but Aryll spotted this.

"Over there!" She exclaimed as they turned around and an arrow flew over to Zelda, but she quickly side stepped out of the way and pulled out her crossbow and fired a regular arrow, hitting him in the shoulder.

"AGH!" The figure cried and quickly ran off, pulling the arrow out of him.

"Yeah, you better run." Zelda said with a smirk and turned around, her eyes widening and her smirk disappearing, letting out a small gasp. While the arrow didn't hit Zelda… it hit someone else in the chest, and everyone slowly turned to see what Zelda was looking at.

"Oh my goddess!" Lana exclaimed. "Aryll!"

Aryll stared at the arrow that was embedded in her chest and she slowly pulled it out before she started falling, but Impa was quick to catch her, blood pouring out of her chest. "Aryll! No!" Zelda quickly knelt down near her. "No no no no no, stay with us! No!"

Aryll said nothing, but looked at Zelda. "Ze-Zelda… I… I don't think I'm gonna…"

"No, don't say that! We'll get through this!" Zelda said, tears swelling in her eyes. "Fi… how are her vitals…?"

Fi emerged from the sword, but looked sad herself. "I scanned her… but… it hit her clean in her vital organs… there's nothing we can do, not even a healing spell."

"No… Aryll…" Zelda quietly sobbed.

Aryll looked at Zelda, a tear escaping Aryll's eye. "I'm glad… I've got to meet… all of you…"

"It's gonna be okay, little one…" Groose said, holding on to her hand. "It's gonna be okay!" He said as Impa gently rubbed her forehead while Fi gently hummed a more somber version of Ballad of the Goddess.

"Zelda…" Aryll formed a weak smile. "You have… to save Hyrule… from my brother…"

"I… I will…" Zelda whispered, watching Aryll's stomach rising and falling slowly.

"Th-thank… you…" Aryll smiled before taking her last breath.

"…She's gone…" Fi said, looking away as a tear escaped her eye while Impa closed Aryll's eyes.

"Aryll…" Zelda silently sobbed to herself while no one else said anything… until Zelda clenched her fists as she stood up, wiping her tears as rage was seen in her eyes. "That bastard… HE'LL PAY FOR THIS!" She screamed and ran off.

"Zelda, wait!" Groose exclaimed as Zelda ran up the hill, following the blood trail that the killer left behind as she closed in on him as he was in the forest, crossing a small bridge as Zelda raised her sword up in the air and used a Skyward Strike to knock him down.

"GAH!"

Zelda ran over to the hooded figure, knelt down and rolled him over as she got on top of him and activating Din's Fire and fire punched him, as the force from the punch blew the hood off, revealing who the killer was, as her eyes widened. "Link?!"

Link growled and kicked her off of him. "So it is true, you learned a few moves…" He said.

Zelda clenched her fists. "Why… why did you kill her… WHY DID YOU?!"

"That arrow was meant for you." Link told her. "However, you dodged and it hit my sister instead… but it's no big deal, she was an obstacle anyway."

"You killed the only family you had left!"

"She's no sister of mine! She was going to take the throne from me, and now that she's dead, no one is stopping me from changing Hyrule for the better!"

"But why…" Zelda trembled with rage. "She was just a little girl… have you no sympathy?!"

Link smirked. "Only the weak show sympathy. The strong shows no mercy." He chuckled. "You went on a meaningless journey to try to take me out, and you're still the naive girl I always took you for. So, tell me, Zelda… have you gotten stronger? If you have, kill me right here. Swing your blade with everything you got!"

Zelda's trembling got worse and glared at him with hateful eyes, angry tears swelling in her eyes. "Everyone was right… you've changed. You've gone off the deep end… my best friend is long gone." She reached for the Master Sword, glaring at Link, who smirked at her, daring her to attack him. "I'm going to kill you right here and now… Link… YOU BASTAAAAAAAAAAAAAARD!" She screamed and unsheathed the Master Sword, quickly slashing him over and over while angrily screaming while Link blocked her attacks with his shield calmly.

Link smirked and swung his sword upward to quickly disarm her and then impaled her in the gut, as Zelda had a pained look in her eyes and looked up at Link, who simply let out a chuckle. "You're predictable." He said and then removed the sword, kicking her down to the ground and then planted his foot on her wound, making her hiss in pain as blood was coming out of her mouth, looking at her smugly. "You went on a meaningless journey, and you couldn't even take me out. You're pathetic. You're weak. And most of all… you're naive, and you know what? You're no longer in a thorn in my side. Enjoy the last few moments." He said as he released his foot and then walked off, disappearing into the forest.

Zelda gasped for air, looking at the sky as a tear escaped her eye, and then Groose and the others came running up. "Zelda… ZELDA!" Groose yelled.

"Oh no! No no no no no! We can't lose you too!" Lana exclaimed.

Impa clenched her fists. "First Aryll… now Zelda… that bastard has stooped so low…"

"Zelda! Zelda, stay with us! ZELDA!"

"Wait! I have an idea!" A voice exclaimed as they saw Purah coming up to them.

"What's the idea?!" Groose asked as Zelda's sight and hearing started to fade.

"Well, you're not gonna like this, but I propose that we…" Zelda could barely hear what Purah had to say.

"No! Anything but-" Impa's protests were also fading until everything went dark.

* * *

_"__Awaken, child." _

Zelda opened her eyes, but she couldn't move. She moved her eyes to see she was in a flowery field. She heard footsteps approaching and she tried to ask who it was, but her words did not come out of her mouth, as Hylia towered above her.

_"__Your story has not ended yet. You still have much to tell in your journey. This is just a minor step back." _Hylia could see the questioning look Zelda was giving her. _"__Link hasn't won yet, you are still alive after all. He has overpowered you, so perhaps you should do the same." _She said and conjured up a mask in her hand. _"__This… is the power of the Fierce Deity. I am granting you this power so that you may claim victory over Link. You must not let him win." _She said and gently pressed it on Zelda's chest, her body absorbing the power.

_"__Now, arise, child. Your battle is far from over. Go and gather up an army to destroy Link once and for all." _She started to disappear after that, the light blinding Zelda once more and making her close her eyes.

* * *

Zelda opened her eyes, only to see that she was in darkness. "…Hello?" She started to feel for something until she pressed a button as light started to hit Zelda as she opened her eyes and found herself in a cave. "Where am I?" She wondered and looked down. "…And why am I sitting in water?"

She got off the chamber and lost her footing, making her fall over. "Nngh! Ow… stupid legs, wake up!" She groaned, hitting them repeatedly and then noticed that she was wearing only underwear and an undershirt. "What…?" She wondered. "What happened to my clothes?" She asked as she got up after waking her legs up and looked around. "Fi? Groose? Lana? Impa? Where are you!" She called out and looked at the strange chamber she came out of. "Slumber of Restoration." She read.

Zelda tilted her head. "Huh? How long was I out?" She asked and folded her arms. "What happened… the last thing I remember was…" Her eyes widened, remembering what Link did to her. "Link…" She clenched her fists and pulled up her undershirt a bit, seeing a scar that was once her wound. "Oh…" She looked around. "HELLO!" She called out, but no one answered as she noticed a door nearby as she opened it up.

"What happened after Link stabbed me… I need to know!" She said and started walking out, desperate for answers.

* * *

**And THIS is where that timeskip comes into play from the very first chapter! (This would've been up yesterday, but alas... I caught a cold. Figures.) **

**Finally... after all these years, I found a Pokemon that I can relate to! Morpeko! **

**...Okay, seriously, HOW is Galarian Weezing part Fairy type? That doesn't make any sense at all... right? It's just a smokestack Weezing. Eh... Pokemon's weird.**

**Galarian Zigzagoon though... I'm glad we're not just pandering to Gen 1 anymore like in Sun and Moon. Obstagoon was a pleasant surprise!**

**But... Team Yell? Seriously, THAT'S what they went with? Eh... if it's based off of toxic fanbases (Looking at YOU, Smash Fanbase!) then hey, i'm all for it, but... I kinda wish they went for a _less _stupid name, but what can you do. **


	15. I've Been Asleep HOW Long?

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

A bright light hit Zelda in the eyes, making her cover her eyes as she walked onto the cool grass, then Zelda uncovered her eyes and looked around. "Where am I?" She wondered as she kept walking until she got to the edge of a cliff that overlooked everything, spotting Hyrule Castle far into the distance before she turned around and walked down a slope, wondering where she could be. She knew she was still in Hyrule but she didn't recognize the area.

How long was she asleep?

Images of Link impaling her still invaded her mind, and the words that echoed in her mind.

_"__I'm going to kill you right here and now… Link… YOU BASTAAAAAAAAAAAARD!" _

_"__You went on a meaningless journey, and you couldn't even take me out. You're pathetic. You're weak. And most of all… you're naive, and you know what? You're no longer a thorn in my side. Enjoy the last few moments."_

Zelda clenched her fists, still angry over what Link did, especially what he did to his sister.

_"__You have… to save Hyrule… from my brother…"_

Zelda punched a rock wall in frustration. "For Hylia's sake!" She yelled. "How the hell did it come to _this?!__" _

She sat down on a log, sighing in frustration. She didn't know how long she was out, why she didn't die from Link's stabbing, and how Hyrule is faring. Even worse, she didn't know where her friends or her weapons are. She put her hand out and activated Din's Fire, her hand bursting into flame as she breathed a sigh of relief. She was glad she still had her magic with her as she deactivated the magic and stood back up, wandering around the area.

She noticed a few Bokoblins minding their own business in the area. She _could _fry them up, but would prefer busting out her Crossbow and shooting them down, but unfortunately, her weapons weren't on her, so she avoided them for now as she kept walking around.

She soon wandered into a forest, seeing some butterflies flying around the area as a few squirrels ran across the trees… but she _still _didn't know where she was at! Finally, she had enough of the silence. "HEEEEEY! ANYONE OUT THERE?! HELLOOOOOOOO!" She called out, but no one answered as she sighed in frustration. "Oh, who am I kidding…" She muttered as she wandered into a clearing and found some rocks.

Zelda walked to the rocks and climbed on them, sitting down on top of it and sighing. "Where am I?" She asked as the rocks beneath her started moving. "Huh?" She looked down as the rocks suddenly came alive and knocked Zelda off, landing on her back. "OOOF!" She winced and looked to see that she was sitting on a Talus, and it was glaring at her… well, if rocks had eyes, that is. "Oh, you want to rumble?" She asked as she reached for the Master Sword, but she felt no hilt… and she quickly remembered that she was weaponless as she sweatdropped and looked at the Talus. "Uh… eheheh… bye!" She quickly ran off as the Talus threw rocks at her, narrowly missing her or overshooting as Zelda hid behind some trees, then using Farore's Wind to teleport to a bush nearby, hiding underneath it as the Talus looked around, throwing a rock at a tree to topple it, but walked back to its original resting place.

"Phew…" Zelda sighed with relief as she emerged from the bush and walked in the opposite direction. "Hello! Anyone out here? HELLOOOO!" She called out, but no response. "Seriously, where am I?" She wondered to herself, unaware of being followed by someone.

As she kept walking, she clenched her fists and quickly turned around and used Din's Fire on whoever was following her, knocking down a few trees as they caught ablaze, then she looked at the trees before turning around… and a fairy was right in front of her. "Hello!"

"AAAAH!" Zelda yelled as her hand caught on fire before she realized what it was. "…Oh, I got scared by a fairy… that's embarrassing…" She blushed a bit before deactivating her magic.

"Do you scare easily?"

"Not entirely… who are you?"

"I'm Navi! Nice to meet you. What's your name?"

"Zelda."

"Zelda… that's a nice name. What are you doing here in the Great Plateau?"

"Great… _what now?__" _

"You never heard of this place?"

"No, because no one really talked about it… are we in Hyrule or in some other unknown place?" She asked and spotted a mushroom near a tree as she picked it up. "Like, for all we know, we could be in a land called the Mushroom Kingdom!"

"…Really, the first thing you pick up and _that__'__s _what you're going with? That place doesn't even exist."

"Fair point…" Zelda tossed the mushroom away. "Forgive me, I'm just lost and wondering where I am. I've never been to this place, I've never heard of the Great Plateau, and I know I saw Hyrule Castle in the distance, but I don't even know if I'm even in Hyrule anymore. This might be a dream… like I'm in some place called Dreamland!"

Navi sweatdropped. "Now you're speaking gibberish."

Zelda rubbed her head sheepishly. "Yeah…"

"Nevertheless, you are still in Hyrule. Not some made up place called Mushroom Kingdom or Dreamland. They don't exist."

"Alright, alright… that's all I needed to know." Zelda said. "I don't even know how I got here."

"What's the last thing you remember?"

"Um… my ex best friend stabbing me in the gut and next thing I know, I wake up in this random place?"

"Oooof, sounds rough."

"Tell me about it!" Zelda sighed. "Do you know how to get out of this place?"

"Actually, yes! Follow me." Navi flew off as Zelda followed her until they reached the end of a cliff. "Down there is Hyrule Field."

Zelda paled a bit. "Oh goodness! I didn't realize I was so high up…"

"You might want to get something that can help you get to the bottom."

"Well… there is _one _idea." Zelda backed up slowly with a smirk and started running.

"WHOA, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Navi yelled and then Zelda jumped off the cliff. "Welp, she's dead."

Zelda started free falling to the ground at a rapid pace, and then quickly used Farore's Wind to have her teleport to the ground, doing a somersault as she landed, then stopping at her feet. "Nailed it." She grinned.

"…Whoa…" Navi whispered as she flew down to Zelda. "That was impressive!"

Zelda smiled. "Thanks." She said as she started walking.

"Where are you going?"

"Kakariko Village."

"Why that place? That place burned down a long time ago!"

"I need answers!"

"You're gonna go crazy walking alone!" Navi said as she accompanied Zelda. "I'll accompany you!"

Zelda giggled. "Thank you." She said as the two of them wandered over to Kakariko, only for Zelda to spot something and quickly hid behind a tree, seeing a few Guardians patrolling the area. "Guardians in Hyrule Field? What the devil is going on?"

"You know them?"

"Let's just say one of them tried to kill me." Zelda told her and reached for her pocket to grab her Crossbow, but it wasn't with her. "Crud…" She groaned as she quickly snuck past them… and accidentally stepped on a twig. "Crap!" She exclaimed and hid under a bush, as the snapping of a twig caught the attention of a Guardian as it walked over to Zelda's location. _No no no no, go the other way. Go the other way! _She thought and spotted a rock, grabbing a hold of it as the Guardian towered over her, not noticing her as it looked around, and then Zelda threw the rock to the side. When it bounced on the ground, the Guardian turned its attention to the rock and move towards it.

"Okay, now!" Zelda whispered as she bolted, running straight for a tree and hiding behind it right as the Guardian turned around and saw nothing, then it went back to patrolling the fields with its friends. "Phew…"

"That was a close one." Navi said.

"Yeah." Zelda nodded.

"You sure going to Kakariko is a good idea?"

"I'm positive, yes." She nodded as they headed over to Kakariko, dodging the patrolling Guardians until they made it near the entrance of Kakariko. "I don't know why… but the air surrounded Hyrule feels… sad and tense."

"Oh good, I thought I was the only one." Navi said as they entered Kakariko, but when they did, it was a burned down and destroyed ghost town. "See? I told you. It's gone."

Zelda said nothing but continued to walk through the destroyed village, looking around to see the remains of everything, including a Guardian that she destroyed that almost killed her, then she walked around the village, seeing destroyed buildings and Guardians. "…Why couldn't they restore this place?" She wondered to herself, then she came across Impa's house, with a graveyard full of Guardians… and one little girl.

Zelda immediately noticed a gravestone near the destroyed stairs as she walked over to it and knelt down. _"__Here lies Aryll, the biggest ball of sunshine that lit up Kakariko." _Zelda closed her eyes and knelt down, placing her hand on the gravestone.

"I'll destroy him, Aryll… I'll bring peace to Hyrule and bring it back to its former glory." She whispered.

"You came here to pay respects?" Navi asked.

"No, I came here for answers." She said and then turned to the hill where she chased Link, then she walked up the hill and found the spot where she confronted him, while also being mortally wounded by him. "This was the spot where I should've died… there was no way anyone would survive a stab wound like that…" She clenched her fists. "Why… why am I still alive… and how long was I asleep? None of this makes sense… I'll find my answers somehow." She said and walked off back to the village to take one last look at the place before closing her eyes and sighing. "Come on, Navi. We're out of here."

"Okay." Navi nodded as they walked off.

"Going so soon?" A voice asked as Zelda quickly turned around to seeing a man sitting on top of a destroyed roof. "My my, and here I thought my master had done you in, but here you are alive and well! It's surprising to say the least." He said.

"Who are you?" Zelda asked.

The man smirked and then teleported off of the roof and in front of Zelda. "I am but a humble, yet fabulous servant to His Majesty. I am forever in his debt for finding me all those years ago. You may call me… Ghirahim."

"You serve under Link?"

"Precisely."

"LINK?!" Navi yelled. "The most rotten king of Hyrule?! _THAT _Link?!"

"The same Link who impaled me… in more ways than one." Zelda said.

"Oh my goodness!"

Ghirahim chuckled. "He is going to be mighty surprised to see you still walking around Hyrule, especially after that fatal stab wound he inflicted five years ago."

Zelda looked confused. "Wait, time out… what did you just say?"

"Fatal stab wound?"

"No, after that!"

"Five years ago?"

"Yes! That one."

"So, you don't really know? It's been five years since that fateful night."

Zelda's eyes widened. "I… I was asleep… for five years?!"

"Did I stutter? Of course you've been asleep for five years! Were you expecting a hundred years?"

"Oh…. Oh my goddess…" Zelda's legs turned to jelly as she fell on her knees. "I've… I've been…"

"Hmph. Sounds to me like this is your first time hearing such a thing. It's been five years since Link left you to die."

"Five… five years…" Zelda whispered. "No… you're lying. No one can sleep for that long!"

"Oh, but they can! Exhibit A." He pointed to Zelda. "That would be you."

Zelda struggled to get up. "No… it hasn't been five years. It couldn't have!" She turned to Navi. "How long has it been since Kakariko burned down?"

"Oh, about five years, I think? Today would mark the fifth anniversary of it burning down… or was that yesterday?"

"No… no way…"

Ghirahim walked over to Zelda. "It would be quite a shame to see His Majesty's hard work crumble now that you're walking around." He pulled out his sword. "I'll make this quick."

Zelda growled and reached for her Master Sword, only to remember she didn't have it on her, so she resorted to activating Din's Fire. "Oh? You think some harmless little fire is gonna take me down? Don't make me laugh." He smirked. "You're as good as dead anyway."

"I'm gonna try!" Zelda exclaimed, quickly launching a fireball toward him as he casually tilted his head to the side, the fireball grazing him as it went past him.

"You have no shield, no weapons, and you can only rely on your magic. You really think you have a chance?" Ghirahim smirked.

"Zelda… run!"

"Right!" Zelda nodded, using Farore's Wind to teleport to safety right as Ghirahim swung down, as he turned around to see Zelda and Navi fleeing.

"Oh, we got ourselves a live one. Good, at least she won't make it boring." Ghirahim smirked as he disappeared as Zelda and Navi got out of Kakariko and kept fleeing, while Ghirahim appeared behind them and threw a dagger at Zelda, hitting her just behind the knee.

"Gah!" Zelda cried and fell over.

"Zelda!" Navi exclaimed as Ghirahim walked over to them. "Leave her alone!" Navi yelled as she flew over to him, but he swatted her away to a tree.

"Annoying little pest." Ghirahim said as he walked over to Zelda. "Now, where were we?" He wondered as he walked toward her and just as he was about to pick her up, Zelda quickly activated Din's Fire and threw a wave of fire at him point blank in his face. "AGH!" He yelled, and then growled in anger, kicking her in the stomach as she cried out in pain before picking her up by the throat. "You annoying brat! I'll make you pay for such insolence!" He snarled and threw her to the side as he readied his sword as Zelda tried to use it again, but Ghirahim slammed his foot into her hand to deactivated it. "Farewell, you brat!"

Suddenly, an arrow came flying from the sky and impaled his shoulder. "AGH!" He snarled and then a Rito landed near them.

"Hey. Back away from the woman."

"Rrgh…" Ghirahim snarled as he took the arrow out of his shoulder and glared at him and aimed his sword at him.

"Go ahead and swing at me, I'll just plant another on your chest." He threatened.

"Tch…" Ghirahim put his sword away and backed off, then glared at Zelda. "Next time, you won't be so lucky." He said and disappeared.

"You alright?" The Rito asked, offering his wing to which Zelda took it and was helped up by him.

"Yeah, I'm okay." Zelda said and turned to Navi groggily floating over to them.

"Ugh… I'm okay…" Navi groaned.

"Who are you?" Zelda asked.

"I am Revali, one of the best Rito archers out there, and you must be Zelda."

Zelda looked at him, slowly backing up and activated Din's Fire. "How did you know my name?"

"Relax. I am not here to kill you unlike clown boy. I'm here to retrieve you."

"For what?"

"To the new base of operations. Impa and everyone else is there."

Zelda relaxed a bit, deactivating Din's Fire. "Okay… so you know them?"

"I do." Revali nodded and grabbed a hold of Zelda. "Hold on tight."

"What are you-" Revali activated Revali's Gale and flew up high into the sky. "WHOOOOOOA!"

"Hey, wait up!" Navi exclaimed and flew after them.

* * *

_Meanwhile__…_

Link was looking out over Castle Town, or what had become of it, looking around to seeing the guards demanding Rupees from homes, some Hyrulians begging for scraps on the streets, a few guards hauling someone to prison. He let out a chuckle. "It'll all be worth it soon." He said and then heard footsteps behind him, but didn't turn around. "Ghirahim… how was your little walk around Hyrule?"

"It was, shall we say, eventful."

"Oh?"

"Let's just say I had a run in with an old friend of yours at Kakariko."

"Old friend? I have no idea what you could possibly be talking about."

"I'm sure the name "Zelda" will jog your memory?"

Link's eyes widened and turned around. "What did you say?"

"I saw Zelda in Kakariko."

Link let out a chuckle and turned around to overlook his kingdom. "Don't be so absurd, Ghirahim. She's dead. There's no way she could possibly be alive."

"And how can you be so certain? You _did _stab her in the gut, did you not?"

"I did."

"And you left her there to die. Why didn't you finish the job by cutting off her head?"

"Because no one can survive bleeding out… not with that wound I gave her. You probably saw someone dressed up as Zelda. Find that person and kill them on sight, no one is allowed to dress up like her."

"Could the pretender throw around magical fire all willy nilly?" Ghirahim folded his arms. "Sounds to me that she's not dead."

Link leaned on to the balcony, clenching his hands tightly. "Magical fire… and you're sure that this is Zelda?"

"Would I ever lie to you, master?"

Link's body trembled only a little bit before letting out a chuckle… before laughing crazily. "Oh, this is rich! My old friend came back from the grave to try and take me down again! She can't even touch me… she's naive! If she thinks she can try to take me on, I'd _love _to see her try!"

Ghirahim let out a chuckle. "Yes… fighting you would be suicide."

Link smirked. "Try all you like, Zelda… you won't _win.__"_

* * *

_Back with Zelda__…_

"What's that?" Zelda asked.

"That is Rito Village. It is where the base of operations is at." Revali explained as they flew across a small canyon before landing at the entrance. "Here we are." He said, letting go of Zelda.

"Nice place!" Navi said as they started walking, Zelda noticing the survivors of Kakariko were also there, including a few Gorons, Zoras, Gerudo and some Hylians, all of them looking at Zelda in awe, even a few Rito were shocked to see her.

They soon got to the main center of the village. "Wait right here." Revali said and walked off to a hut, and the first one to come out was Impa.

"…As I live and breathe…" Impa could only say as Purah walked out as well.

"YES! It worked!" Purah cheered and looked at Impa smugly. "And you thought it'd take a hundred years!" She teased.

"Well… I had my doubts…"

"ZELDA!" Lana yelled and ran over, glomping her.

"WHOA!" Zelda nearly fell over. "Hey Lana!" She smiled as she heard a familiar whinny as Epona ran up to her and gently nuzzled her neck. "Hey girl, glad to see you're okay." She smiled, then Paya and Groose walked over.

"Zelda… is that really you?" Groose asked.

"It's me. Alive and well." Zelda smiled as Groose smiled back, before tears started forming in his eyes and he quickly hugged Zelda. "It's okay, big guy… I'm here." She said. "It's okay to cry."

"Me? Crying? N-no, I just had something in my eye." Groose said, wiping his eyes.

"Where's Fi?" Zelda asked, then someone poked her on the shoulder as she turned to see Fi.

"I'm right here, master." Fi replied, and then Zelda hugged her, which the spirit returned the hug in return. "It's so good to see you again."

"It's great to see you all again." Zelda smiled.

"Mmph… I'm not crying at this beautiful reunion…" Navi said, sniffing a bit. "Really, I'm not!"

"While it's nice to have a reunion, we have much to discuss." Impa said.

"Right, we do." Zelda nodded.

"Let's head back inside. We need to bring you up to speed." Impa suggested. "There's something you need to know."

* * *

**I toyed with the idea of having Ghirahim show up in the story, which is why I had Fi say "99.9% certain that he's gone", because who's to say he's gone for good? That and I love Sir Fabulous to death.**

**As much as I despise Revali, I thought it would've been a crime if I didn't include him in this story. I mean, I have Mipha, Daruk and Urbosa in this story, so why not bring in Revali as well? **


	16. Up to Speed

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.**

* * *

"Have you noticed anything when you woke up?" Impa asked.

"Yeah, I woke up in some place called the Great Plateau. I've never even heard of the place until, well, when I woke up."

"That's because the Great Plateau is well hidden. To everyone, it's just a rock wall in the middle of Hyrule. To others who know about it, it's a sanctuary… a place to go into hiding. How there are Bokoblins and Talus' in that place, I'll never understand. The Great Plateau is also where the Slumber of Restoration resides. Purah made that herself and thought it would be best if it was used on someone who was gravely injured. We barely got you there in time. You nearly died."

"Yeah… I remember that day fondly." Zelda folded her arms. "It feels just like yesterday when he did that."

"Of course, Purah hadn't tested it out and I thought it would've taken a hundred years or so for you to wake up."

"But she didn't!" Purah grinned.

"Why a hundred years?" Zelda asked.

"It was just a hunch I had… glad I was proven wrong. Now, did you notice anything else?"

"Yes. There were a lot more Guardians patrolling Hyrule."

"That's because His Highness thinks an invasion will happen on his land so he's having a lot more Guardians patrolling the fields in case someone gets the right idea to charge right in."

Zelda sighed. "He's paranoid."

"Exactly. Did you see anything else?"

"When I was visiting Kakariko, I was needing answers on how I was still alive… and then I met Ghirahim."

Impa gave her a grave look. "You've met him…"

"Something tells me he's not all about flair and being fabulous." Zelda said.

"He's not." Fi said. "As soon as we put you in Purah's machine, Link went on a little journey around Hyrule, and found what he was looking for. It was well hidden in the Yiga Hideout and he just so happened to find it. There, Ghirahim woke up and formed a partnership with Link. Link is his new master, and Ghirahim is basically his right hand man. He is Link's executioner should someone try to take his life… and while Link has executioners of his own, Ghirahim does it well. Those two are really dangerous together."

"Indeed. Not only that, but in these past five years, he's made Hyrule a living hell. He raised taxes to the extreme, Castle Town is practically a shell of its former self, villages and towns have been overrun by Link's regime. Anyone who dares defy the king or his troops are put on death row or are executed immediately to make an example. The poor are basically starved to death or thrown in jail for not paying up, they're even evicted from their homes. Only the rich can survive in this instability… and you know what the sad part is? All of the rich in Hyrule are strong allies of the empire."

"Empire?" Zelda asked in surprise. "No… he didn't…"

"He did. He turned the kingdom into his own empire, and he's conquered mostly everything. Death Mountain has been captured, Zora's Fountain is held hostage, you can't even swim in Lake Hylia because there are guards who will execute you on sight if you dare swim in it. Not even Kokiri Forest and Ordon Village were safe… The only saving grace is Rito Village and Gerudo Valley. They've tried to conquer Gerudo Valley, but Ganondorf is holding them off… however, they're soon going to take Gerudo Valley. They know the Gerudo are exhausted from all this fighting… and not to mention the Twili who have come to help them are also exhausted."

Zelda clenched her fists. "That mad man… there's no way we can't let him win. We can't! He's turned Hyrule upside down and he thinks this is for the best?!"

"We've tried everything we can to stop him, but nothing seems to work. Everyone you've seen in this village? It's all we have left. We've battled constantly to get the upper hand, but the empire would overwhelm us. This is all we have left." Impa said. "I'm not ready to give up, yet. I'm not going to sit back and watch Hyrule fall. I'd rather die than sit back and watch everyone suffer for this…"

"If Link gets his hands on Gerudo Valley and Rito Village, we're toast. I don't think there'd be a way to come back from this." Groose said.

Zelda folded her arms. "Well, I think it's a good thing I woke up. I plan on turning this _around.__" _

"Yeah! There's no way we'll let him win!" Navi exclaimed.

Impa chuckled. "I was hoping you'd say that. The Hyrule Freedom Fighters aren't going down without a fight."

"Hyrule… Freedom Fighters?" Zelda tilted her head. "That doesn't roll off the tongue."

"That's what I told her, but she didn't listen!" Revali exclaimed.

"Well, now that you're here, maybe you have a chance to change the name." Impa folded her arms. "Hyrule Freedom Fighters was all I could think of."

Zelda folded her arms. "Hmm…"

"Oh! I got it!" Groose said. "How about the Grooseinators?"

"Ew, no! That's stupid." Lana told him.

"Agreed. How about we call ourselves the Hyrule Champions?" Paya suggested.

"HA! Champions that keep getting themselves killed? That's rich." Revali said. "Might as well call ourselves the Hyrule Losers, considering we've lost every battle."

"How about the Super Smash… uh… Family? Fighters? Siblings? Brothers and Sisters?" Navi sweatdropped. "I don't know where I'm going with this… I had a great idea, now I'm sure it's never gonna catch on…"

"Hyrule Battalion Army?" Lana asked. "…No, that's dumb."

"How about we call ourselves "Aryll's Angels"?" Fi suggested.

"Ha! That's stupid." Revali said. "How about we call ourselves the Hyrule Avengers? We avenge Hyrule from Link's wicked rule!"

"Hmmm…" Zelda folded her arms, when a lightbulb struck her. "Aha! I got it!" Zelda snapped her fingers. "Hyrule Warriors."

"That's also stupid. I'd say we go with my-"

"Hold up a second, Revali." Impa said, raising her hand. "Hyrule Warriors… I actually like the sound of that."

"Agreed!" Everyone else nodded, except for Revali.

"Hmph… there was an idea…" Revali grumbled, folding his arm in annoyance.

"So, where do we strike first? Name a stronghold and we'll go for it!" Groose said.

Zelda folded her arms and looked at the map on the wall as she brought it down and placed it on the table. "Okay, so we leave Hyrule Castle alone for now… that just leaves pretty much all of Hyrule that Link has conquered." She said and then looked at the various places. "Who's holding down the fort on these locations?"

"Someone by the name of Wizzro has taken Ordon Village and Kokiri Forest. The fiercest warrior known as Volga is at Death Mountain. The one who captured Zora's Fountain goes by the name of Agahnim. Any of the other towns and villages are just soldiers." Impa said.

"I see…" Zelda mused. "We strike Zora's Fountain and get rid of this Agahnim guy and deal with the rest. Once we're done with them, we head over to Gerudo Valley to offer Ganondorf a hand… and then we strike Hyrule Castle to end this nightmare once and for all."

"Good plan." Groose nodded.

"The Hyrule Warriors will not lose any more battles. Today… we strike back and take back Hyrule!" Zelda exclaimed.

"YEAH!" Everyone cheered and then Zelda turned to Impa.

"I need a weapon."

Impa chuckled. "Follow me." She said as Zelda followed her outside as they walked into another hut. "We kept your clothes and weapons in here just by the off chance you made it out." She said.

"Thanks." Zelda smiled as she walked in, putting her clothes on and equipping her weapons, then grabbed the Hylian Shield and strapped it to her arm, and then walked outside to join the others.

"Well now, it's like she never left!" Lana smiled.

"Let's take Zora's Fountain back." Zelda smirked and then Fi went back into the Master Sword and then got on Epona, as the horse neighed while Groose got on his Loftwing. "Alright, let's move out! We're taking Hyrule back!" She yelled, pulling out her Master Sword. "LET'S MAKE THIS COUNT!" She yelled as all the villagers cheered and then Epona started running out of the village with the small band of Warriors following suit.

* * *

_Meanwhile, at Zora__'__s Fountain…_

Agahnim was looking over Zora's Fountain from a mountain, chuckling to himself as he was watching the Zora's being forced to carry minerals in chains and being prodded by soldiers. "Isn't this glorious? Digging up all of the fountain's minerals and having them be delivered to the king… it's simply glorious."

"My people are dying!" A voice yelled as Agahnim turned to see Mipha, currently chained up to a tree. "You think you can get away with this? What will happen if all of the Zora's perish because you forbid them from entering the water? You'll be in a territory with no Zoras!"

"Then I will make a small kingdom of a different race. Do you think I care for Zoras? If you think I care for them, you are sorely mistaken." He walked over to Mipha. "All I care is taking these minerals to Link so he can build weapons to dispose of those pathetic Hyrule Freedom Fighters."

"If Zelda were here, she wouldn't have let this happen!"

"Zelda? HA! That girl is dead. Hyrule is headed toward a bright future."

"Bright future? Don't make me laugh… Hyrule is falling apart and you're not seeing this!"

"Hmmhmmhmm… we shall see who has the last laugh." Agahnim said and then looked down toward the fountain with a smirk.

"What will you do if all the minerals are gone? Then what? You're going to disappoint your king."

"He won't be disappointed when all the minerals are his. Now, if I were you, I'd be quiet. Your new king of the fountain is watching his work come to fruition."

"As long as I still breathe, I'm still the queen of Zora's Fountain! You do _not _control my people."

"Oh? Then perhaps I should do something about that." He smirked.

* * *

_With the Warriors__…_

A Guardian exploded after getting hit by an Ancient Arrow from Zelda as they moved in closer to the Fountain. "Come on, we're almost there!" Zelda said as they picked up the pace, quickly entering Zora's Domain when a few Zoras popped out of the water.

"Hold it right there!" One of them yelled, forcing them to stop.

"Don't tell me a few Zoras were brainwashed." A Goron groaned.

"What is the meaning of this!" A Hylian yelled.

"Move now or we'll be forced to take you down." Impa ordered.

"What are you trying to do?" A Zora asked. "You guys can't win against Agahnim… believe us, we tried and we only escaped with a few scars! Sidon wasn't so lucky… he's alive, but he's imprisoned inside the fountain. I'm not sure what they're doing but it's best if you left… for your sakes!"

Zelda hopped off of Epona. "We're taking Hyrule back."

"Wh-what?! You're… you're that Zelda chick from five years ago! We thought you were dead!"

"No, I'm very much alive." Zelda told him. "Now, we are planning on taking it all back… if you'll excuse us, we must be heading off."

"There's a problem. You see, Agahnim put up an electric barrier just after we escaped. The only way to deactivate it is by defeating him, but fighting him is impossible. Some Zoras have tried everything in their power to try and take him out, but nothing works and they end up getting killed. You can't go through normally."

"Then I guess we'll have to take a different approach." Zelda said and turned to Groose. "Groose, get me up in the sky with a birds eye view."

"You got it!" Groose nodded as Zelda hopped on the Loftwing and flew up to get a better view of the situation, noticing the electrical barrier. "Ooooh, yup, that's a barrier alright…" He said.

"I wonder… how about the back?" Zelda suggested as Groose flew off to take a look and found that there were no barriers. "Wow… he didn't think that one through." She said. "Alright, set me down near the temple. You guys find a way to get around the barrier."

"What about you?"

"Me? I'm gonna try to take down Agahnim."

"Alright, good luck." Groose told her, dropping Zelda off near the temple.

"Thanks." Zelda said with a nod as Groose flew off, then Zelda walked down the hill. "Hmm… I can't help but wonder if I'm forgetting something…" She mused as she walked into the clearing, noticing a few Shock Arrows on the trees, and she went to pull them off to add to her arrow collection… when a looming shadow overlapped her, making her freeze as she slowly turned her head to see the Lynel staring down at her. "Oh… um… h-hello…!" Zelda paled.

The Lynel folded his arms, glaring at Zelda as she slowly put the Shock Arrows back. "Um… I never stole them?" She sheepishly grinned as the Lynel brought out his sword and shield, as Zelda prepared herself to fight, but suddenly the Lynel stabbed the sword into the ground and bowed to her, growling at her. "Uh… what are you saying?"

_"__Allow me to translate." _Fi got out of the sword. "The Lynel is requesting your help. His kind has been held hostage by Agahnim." She translated as the Lynel growled some more. "If you help him free his kind, he'll repay you back in kind by helping you slay the wicked king of Hyrule."

Zelda looked at the Lynel in surprise. "Is this true?" She asked as the Lynel nodded. "Huh… an army of Lynels by our side… that's interesting…" She mused and then extended her hand. "You got yourself a deal!" She said as the Lynel shook her hand… and then pulled her up. "WHOOOA!" She yelled and was planted on his back. "Oh… uh… thank you." She said as Fi went back to the sword. "Alright, let's go! Yah!" She ordered as the Lynel took off to deal with Agahnim.

* * *

**I was originally gonna have the Agahnim fight be in this chapter, but I thought "Nah, we can save that for the next chapter." so here we are! **

**Now if you'll excuse me, I need to grab the brain bleach because shirtless Wario and Shirtless Eggman is now a thing... while also wanting to scream at both Sony and Disney for pulling Spider-Man out of the MCU.**


	17. Agahnim

****************Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.****************

* * *

Zelda and the Lynel kept charging until they came to a stop at a cliff, overlooking the Zora Fountain as Zelda got off of the Lynel and pulled out her Sheikah Slate. "Let's see, I know there's a camera function on here somewhere… AHA!" She pressed the button and then zoomed in, taking a closer look. "Agahnim turned the entire Zora Race into slaves…" She whispered, seeing them chained together and gathering up minerals and also mining them with pickaxes. "Okay, where are you, Agahnim…" She wondered to herself as she looked to the throne room but found it empty.

"He's not there." She said and looked around, spotting something at a different end of the cliff. "Why is Mipha chained to a tree?!" She exclaimed in disgust and scowled. "Alright, we go save Mipha and then find Agahnim, then we save everyone else." She got back on the Lynel as it started charging toward Mipha, knocking down any Bokoblin, Moblin or Lizalfos unlucky enough to be in the Lynel's way and then got to the tree in question.

"Your highness!" Zelda called out as she hopped off of the Lynel. "Are you okay?!"

"Mmm…" Mipha slowly looked up, looking a little bit dehydrated. "Zel… Zelda…?"

"It's gonna be okay." Zelda told her.

"Nnngh… Look out!"

"Huh?" Zelda tuned around and nearly got a magic blast to the face hadn't she reacted in time by rolling out of the way.

"Your reaction time is incredible." A voice mused as Agahnim approached them. "Then again, I should expect nothing less from the so-called Heroine of Hyrule."

"You must be Agahnim." Zelda said, unsheathing the sword. "Just the guy I'm looking for." She smirked as the Lynel unsheathed its sword as well.

Agahnim chuckled. "Hmmhmmhmm, you think you can touch me with that pathetic sword?"

"Yeah, I think I can." Zelda smirked.

Agahnim smirked. "Just try to hit me." He opened his arms up.

"Well, this is gonna be easy."

_"__I feel uneasy about this…" _Fi said as Zelda ran over to him and slashed him, but the Master Sword went through him, not even hurting him. "Huh?!"

"You fool! Nothing can truly hurt me!" Agahnim smirked and then magic appeared in his fingers and then struck Zelda at point blank.

"Argh!" Zelda cried and then found herself trapped in darkness as it was pulling her in. "Mmph! What… what's going on?!"

"Drown in the depths of sorrow until you can breathe no more!" Agahnim taunted as Zelda tried to fight back as the Lynel went to help her, but Zelda was sucked into the depths and then the magic disappeared. "Heh, she's no more."

The Lynel snarled at this and roared at him, attempting to cut him down but Agahnim laughed and fired magic at him to launch him away where he fell off the cliff and fell into the water, making a loud splash that caught the attention of some Zoras. "Pathetic. No one can touch me."

* * *

Zelda opened her eyes before letting out her first breath. "Where am I?" She asked and looked around, seeing everything is so dreary. "Why is everything so… depressing?" She wondered to herself and then looked down to see that Zora's Fountain was now filled with lava. "WHAT IN THE NAME OF DIN?!"

"Well, this is a fine mess you got us into." A voice said.

"Huh? Who said that?"

"Look behind you."

Zelda turned behind her to see her dark self, looking completely annoyed. "Oh, dark me? What are you doing here?"

"Apparently, I'm more active in this dark and dreary world than I am in the light world." Dark Zelda said. "Seriously, what the hell were you thinking?"

"How was I supposed to know he'd do that?"

"He invited you to attack him… that was obviously a trap! You weren't thinking straight!"

"Well, how can I think straight when I woke up five years later and finding out that Link turned Hyrule upside down! I didn't see you come up with any bold plans!" Zelda argued.

"That…! Is entirely true…"

"_Will you two knock it off?__" _Fi asked and popped out of the Master Sword. "We have to figure out where we are and arguing with yourself isn't going to change anything."

"Fiiiiine…" Dark Zelda sighed. "Let's just get this over with…"

"Agreed." Zelda nodded as they started walking. "So, dark me, where were you this whole time?"

"I'm basically your shadow, though I'm snoozing away while you walk around in the light realm. By the way…" She slapped Zelda upside the head.

"OOOF! What was THAT for?!"

"That was for getting the both of us nearly killed by Link. You have _got _to control your emotions."

"I can control my emotions just fine!"

"Oh really? Then explain why you were so easily defeated by Link."

"I… uh… I was…"

"Blinded by emotion?"

"No! I was… uh… okay, I was."

"You've got to keep control of your emotions otherwise you're just going to get us killed."

"Fine, I'll keep it in check…" Zelda sighed. "So, do you know where we are?"

"Well, by the looks of it, we're at a lava filled Zora's fountain." Dark Zelda said. "We might as well find a way down and explore the place." She suggested as Zelda nodded and they walked off while Fi went back into the Master Sword, climbing down the mountain and walking alongside the Lava River until they got to the fields, noticing several Hinoxes going about their day.

"Hinoxes… why did it have to be Hinoxes?" Zelda groaned.

"Let's just ignore them." Dark Zelda told her as they wandered around until they found a village. "Hey, maybe someone over there can tell us where we are."

"Hopefully." Zelda nodded as they walked into the village, where they noticed the town was abandoned, filled to the brim with destroyed homes and buildings. "What is this place?"

"I don't know, but we need to see if anyone is still here." Dark Zelda walked ahead to see if anyone was still around, where they found a few going about their day.

"Excuse us!" Zelda caught the attention of a woman. "Do you know by chance where we are, what land we are in?"

"What land are we in?" The woman giggled. "That's a good one!"

"No, seriously, where are we?" Dark Zelda folded her arms.

"How come you two don't know that y'all are in Lorule?"

"LORULE?!" The two of them looked at each other.

"Do you know what Lorule is?" Zelda asked.

"No, I never really heard of the place!"

"Neither have I!"

"Oh, you two are serious." The woman mused. "Well, if you want to know more about Lorule, you can go ask the ruler of this place."

"Let me guess, his name is Link?" Zelda asked.

"Who's Link? The ruler of this place is called Queen Hilda."

"Where's the castle?"

"Oh, it's straight path from here. Just be careful, Hinoxes tend to roam around Lorule Fields."

"Thanks for the tip." Dark Zelda nodded and turned to Zelda. "Let's go."

"Right." Zelda nodded and they took off to Lorule Castle, dodging their way between the Hinoxes that were walking around the fields until they got to the main bridge.

"There it is." Dark Zelda looked at the castle in front of her. "Let's go in."

"Whoa! Right now?! I mean, do you think it's wise to go in to the front doors and barge right in?"

"Who said anything about the front doors?" Dark Zelda smirked, seeing an open window.

"Oh no… that's even _worse.__"_

"We're going to get to Hilda one way or another. Sneaking in is our only option."

"Look, you may be dark self, but I refuse to sneak in."

"Well, how the hell are you gonna get to Hyrule Castle when there's possibly tons of Guardians guarding the place?"

"I don't know! I'll think of something!"

"Well, call me when you think of something, I'm sneaking in with or without you."

"Oh HELL no!" Zelda yelled. "You don't know what's in there! You don't know who the guards are!"

"So? I'll just take 'em out with magic."

"Take _who _out with magic?" A voice asked as they froze and turned their heads to see a sorcerer standing before them, and before they could say anything, the sorcerer trapped them in bubbles. "Come now, we must inform the queen about this treachery." He said and walked into the castle and into the throne room where they saw Hilda reading a book on her throne. "Your majesty!"

"Hmm? What is it?" Hilda asked, not looking up from her book.

"These two low lives were plotting to destroy you with magic."

Hilda looked up from her book with a raised eyebrow. "Uh-huh… I see. Thank you for the information, Yuga. I'll handle it from here." She said as Yuga dismissed the bubbles and bowed before her while Hilda walked down the steps. "Hmm, I can't say I've seen you two before." Hilda mused. "Who are you and where did you come from?"

"I'm Zelda… I come from Hyrule!"

"And I'm just her dark shadowy self."

"Hyrule?" Hilda looked surprised. "As in, the light world?"

"Yes, the light world! Where the hell are we?!" Dark Zelda asked.

"You are in Lorule. Think of it as Hyrule's dark world." Hilda explained. "Anyway, what is the purpose of your visit? I assume it's to kill me?"

"No! We wouldn't kill a soul! Your clown of an adviser misheard us!" Dark Zelda said.

"CLOWN?!" Yuga yelled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I meant some girl that can turn into a squid."

"Why you little…!"

"Can you stop with the insults…" Zelda whispered before standing up. "We were sent here by dark magic and we found out that we were not in Hyrule. We heard about you and thought you would help us find a way out of here. Dark me thought it'd be best if we snuck in and took out any strange guards in your castle with magic while I was protesting the whole time." Zelda said. "I didn't think it'd be best if we barged in."

"Oh, sure, throw me under a carriage, why don't you!"

Hilda chuckled. "Smart of you to think that." She said. "Tell me, through what sorcery brought you here?"

"Agahnim." Zelda said.

Hilda's eyes widened in horror. "Agahnim?!"

"You know him?"

"He's only the most despicable warlock of Lorule! I don't know how he got out of Lorule and managed to get to Hyrule… but this is absurd…"

"Hmph! Why should we believe you?" Yuga folded his arms. "You are obviously stalling your execution for threatening to murder the fair queen of Lorule."

Hilda sighed. "I personally agree. Something is very fishy about this." She said and walked closer to Zelda. "If this is some plot from Agahnim to destroy me, then he's obviously trying too hard." She grabbed a hold of Zelda's wrist. "I'll have you personally execu-"

Suddenly, both of their wrists glowed, showing off their different Triforces as both girls gasped. "There's another Triforce?!" Zelda asked.

"The vision…" Hilda whispered before the Triforces disappeared.

"What vision?"

"I had a vision long ago, that someone from Hyrule would come to this realm and claim their best intentions. I was then showed the Triforce of Hyrule and I was told everything…" She looked at Zelda and then at Yuga. "Yuga, cancel the execution. These girls are innocent."

"Mmph… but this dark girl wanted to sneak in here! She obviously needs to be disciplined in some way!"

"Give her a slap on the wrist, I dunno…" Hilda shrugged and looked at Zelda. "Tell me child… tell me everything." She requested as Zelda nodded and gave her the full rundown of what has happened in Hyrule.

"-Aaaand that's pretty much what's going on." Zelda told her.

"So you _were _telling the truth. Agahnim is loose in Hyrule and he's working with that horrible man." Hilda clenched her fists. "He needs to be brought to justice."

"There's just one problem. The Master Sword doesn't work on him."

"That's because he made himself immune to all attacks. I should know, I worked for him at one point before I changed my ways." Yuga said. "However… just because he is immune to all attacks does not mean he is invincible."

"How do I beat him?"

"Simple. You reflect magic back at him."

"So, he's weak to magic?" Dark Zelda asked. "That's easy, Zelda can use Phantom Slash or Din's Fire to get the job done… which reminds me, she hasn't done anything with Phantom Slash yet."

"I'll get to it! Geez…"

"You misunderstand. His _own _magic." Yuga explained. "For some reason, he didn't take into account that he should be immune to his own magic. How ironic, he builds an immunity towards all kinds of attacks thrown at him, yet he doesn't take his own magic to account. Heh, why would he? No one would think about reflecting it back at him."

"So he's weak to his own magic? That's stupid." Dark Zelda said.

"Yet it's effective." Zelda mused. "So we use his own magic against him. Brilliant!"

"There's just one problem. How do we get the hell out of here?" Dark Zelda asked. "We got sent here by dark magic."

"I can fix that. There's a quick way to take you back to Hyrule." Hilda said and closed her eyes, chanting a few words and suddenly Lorule's Triforce appeared before them. "Just touch this and it'll send you back to Hyrule. Just tell it where you want to go."

Zelda nodded as she and her dark self walked to the Triforce and placed their hands on it. "Back to Zora's Fountain." She said as the Triforce glowed and warped the two out of there.

"Good luck, you two. Kick Link's butt for us!" Hilda called out.

* * *

_Back in Hyrule__…_

"Nnngh!" Groose fell on one knee.

"HAH!" Lana yelled, unleashing a lightning bolt on Agahnim but he brushed it to the side and fired a magic bolt at her that knocked her down. "AGH!"

"The hell… is up with this magician?!" Impa exclaimed.

Agahnim laughed. "It is useless! You think you have what it takes to fight me, yet you are failing! Not even your best magician can help you!"

"Nnngh…" Groose got back up. "Tell me again one more time… WHERE THE HELL IS ZELDA?! What did you DO to her?!"

"I've told you… she is long gone! She is sinking in the depths of despair as we speak!" Agahnim laughed. "You will soon JOIN HER!" He yelled, preparing to fire a magic bolt at him, when suddenly a bright light enveloped the area before Zelda landed on the ground between them, while Dark Zelda was back into being Zelda's shadow and the Triforce of Lorule was shining brightly above them.

"Zelda?!" Lana exclaimed.

"Is that… the Triforce?" Lana asked.

"…The Triforce of Lorule…" Agahnim whispered. "How did you get back?!"

"I met with a few friends of yours. Does the name Yuga and Hilda ring any bells?"

"Hilda… HILDA BROUGHT YOU BACK ALONG WITH THAT SNIVELING TRAITOR?!" Agahnim yelled. "Damn you Hilda…! You have meddled with my affairs for the last time!" He yelled as the Triforce disappeared. "Fine! I'll dispose of you here again, this time killing you properly! HAH!" He yelled, unleashing a magic bolt at her, but she quickly used Nayru's Love to send it back to him. "ARGH!"

"Heh, so what Yuga said is true. You're weak to your own magic!"

"That traitor told you everything?!" Agahnim growled and then clapped his hands together, making two copies of himself. "I am immune to everything that is thrown to me. My magic will not be the end of ME!" He yelled.

_"__Zelda! The shield!" _Fi told her.

"Right!" Zelda nodded as the two copies fired magic at her but they disappeared as the real magic bolt came flying to her, but she Shield Bashed the magic to smack it back to Agahnim.

"AAAARGH!" Agahnim yelled. "You… you will not win! You have no chance of WINNING!" He screamed, charging the biggest magic bolt he could throw at her, but Zelda stood her ground, readying her sword as he threw it at her but Zelda quickly used a Hero Spin to send it flying back, hitting him one last time. "AAAAAAAAAAGH!"

Agahnim fell over, weakly looking over to Zelda. "Heh... you may have beaten me... but know this... Link will change Hyrule for the better." He smirked as he slowly disappeared, exploding into light.

"You were too cocky." Zelda said, sheathing the Master Sword.

"What happened?" Impa asked. "Where did you go? What is this Lorule that he spoke of?"

"It's a long story." Zelda said.

"Care to explain it to us while we get Mipha saved?" Revali suggested.

"Good idea." Zelda nodded as they went to do so, unaware of Ghirahim spying on them and teleporting away.

* * *

Link was in Castle Town, speaking to one of the richer families. It was then that Ghirahim appeared behind him. "Master, I have urgent news."

"Oh? Did someone swear their undying loyalty to me?"

"No. Agahnim fell."

"...What, did he fall off a cliff? Tell him to walk it off."

"No, sire. Agahnim fell in battle."

Link's eyes widened. "What?! He shouldn't have fallen! What happened?!"

"He sent Zelda to an alternate version of Hyrule where she had learned Agahnim's weakness."

"He told me he was invincible!"

"Not to his own magic."

Link growled. "So Zelda killed him in battle..." He clenched his fists and punched the house in frustration.

"Hey! That wall is mahogany!" A rich Hylian woman yelled at him, but Link didn't care.

"Damn that woman!" Link yelled. "That naive little brat destroyed my best wizard!"

"Sire, if I may suggest something: I'd be careful around Zelda. She may not be the naive girl you once took her for."

"Rrgh..."

"Something you should also know. The Hyrule Freedom Fighters are under a new name."

"And what is it?!"

"Hyrule Warriors."

Link let out a laugh, though it sounded like a disgusted laugh. "Hyrule Warriors? Sounds pathetic."

"Zelda is part of it."

"Why am I not surprised..." Link grumbled. "Keep an eye on the girl... and attack her if necessary."

"Will do." Ghirahim nodded and disappeared.

* * *

_Back with the Warriors..._

"Lorule... I never thought such a land would exist." Impa mused. "I suppose we can trust them if they told you about Agahnim's weakness."

"I must thank you for freeing me from that horrible wizard..." Mipha said, looking refreshed while sitting in her throne, then they heard roaring as they turned to see the Lynels freed from their prison.

"You will have our support in this war." Sidon told them. "We will send our best troops to aid you."

"Where are you going?" Ruto asked.

"We are setting out to Death Mountain to free the Gorons." Zelda replied.

"I will go with you." Mipha said, standing up.

"What?! Your highness, I must insist you get some rest. You are not well!" Sidon said.

"Pardon my language, but to _hell _with rest. Link is responsible for this mess and he endangered my people. That is unforgivable... he must pay!" Mipha exclaimed as the Zoras cheered for her. "Sidon, look after Zora's Fountain, i'm going to war." She said, summoning her trident.

"If she's going, i'm going!" Ruto grinned.

Sidon sighed. "Very well. I won't stop you. Just don't overdo it."

"I won't." Mipha nodded.

"Glad to have you on board." Revali said with a nod.

"Let's go, guys! To Death Mountain!" Zelda yelled, hopping on Epona as they took off with an army of Lynels and Zoras behind them.

* * *

**Sorry about the wait, it took me a bit to figure out what I wanted to do with the chapter. I think it was worth it!**

**Now, Nintendo... if you would hurry up with a Nintendo Direct, that'd be great. The rumors are kicking into high gear again. SNES Online, Overwatch on the Switch, possibly a Mario Sunshine remake or an Odyssey sequel, Tracer possibly in Smash... (Although, I saw another rumor that Reimu is going to be in Smash... Personally, I want Marisa, but I feel like Reimu would be the Touhou rep... ah well, I also want Reimu so either would do.)**

**If y'all could announce a Direct to dispel or confirm these rumors so we can have Blocked Content and LaxChris shut up, that'd be fantastic.**


	18. Honorable Dragon Warrior

****************Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.****************

* * *

"Hmph, so Agahnim has been defeated." Volga folded his arms and looking over Death Mountain. "Is that all you wish to tell me?"

"I'm warning you… Zelda is not to be trifled with." Ghirahim told him. "If you want, I could help you fight her."

"No… I will take care of her myself."

"She has an army! She'll take you out easily."

"You forget, jester… that I'm a dragon." Volga glared at him. "If you honestly believe I'll do nothing and have them slaughter me, you are honestly mistaken."

"If you say so… just remember to hold your end of the bargain with his highness."

Volga scowled at him. "Don't you _dare _mention that buffoon in my presence."

"You know what happens if you don't hold up your end of the deal."

"Ghirahim… you have ten seconds to get out of here before I roast you alive." He snarled, smoke coming out of his mouth.

Ghirahim chuckled. "I will take my leave… but I will keep an eye on you." He said and disappeared.

Volga grumbled. "I refuse to serve under that horrible man… he has no honor…"

* * *

_At the bottom of Death Mountain__…_

Zelda looked up toward the top. "Alright… here goes nothing. Let's all endure the heat once again."

"Actually, about that… for the past five years, Death Mountain cooled down. Something probably happened when you were asleep." Impa said. "None of us know how it happened."

"Maybe it went dormant." Ruto suggested.

"I was just about to say that." Groose said.

"Well, at least none of us will burn up, right?" Navi guessed.

_"__Right. We'll be safe." _Fi said within the sword.

"Let's go." Zelda said as they went up the mountain, going along the pathway and discovering the lava flow has all petrified as they got closer to the peak. "Did… did Death Mountain go extinct?"

"That shouldn't be possible… Death Mountain is a highly active volcano. There's no way it would go extinct just like that." Impa mused. "If I had to guess, magic was involved."

"What kind of magic would be used to cool down an entire volcano?" Lana wondered.

"Dark magic, probably." Mipha mused where they noticed a boulder coming down on top of them.

"Heads up!" A Hylian exclaimed, but Impa slashed through it, cutting it in half.

"Don't worry. No boulder can get through me." Impa declared as they went through the pathway before they got into Goron Village, which was eerily quiet.

Zelda and Groose walked up ahead. "It wasn't like this the last time we were here." Zelda said.

"I know. I don't like this." Groose whispered, readying his sword as they looked around the village. "This place used to be so upbeat and lively… what happened…"

"I don't know." Zelda said and pulled out her sword. "Fi, scan the area."

_"__Gladly." _The Master Sword glowed as the Warriors were looking around and entering the various huts, finding no Gorons in sight aside from the Gorons who were in Rito Village.

"Left hut clear!" A Hylian yelled.

"This hut is empty!" A Goron exclaimed. "Ooooh, some left over rock soup!"

"Focus!" Revali yelled.

"This hut's deserted!"

"I'm coming up empty over here!"

Some roars and grunts came from the Lynels, signaling that they haven't found anything.

"I got something!" Lana called out, catching everyone's attention as they saw a cowering Goron in a hut.

"No! No! Stay away! Don't eat me!"

"We won't eat you." Zelda told him.

"Yeah, although the Lynels might have a taste of you." A Hylian joked, but earned a slap to the head by one of them. "Ow! I was only joking!"

The Goron soon uncurled and looked at them all. "You… you won't hurt me?"

"No, we won't." Zelda smiled.

"Yeah, we won't hurt ya at all." Groose said as the Goron walked out.

"What's your name?" Impa asked.

"Y-Yunobo." He replied. "I thought I'd hide from the insanity that is going on in this world." He said and then took a look at Zelda and Groose. "Wait… you two look familiar. You two ran off when we were all going to hug you!"

Zelda sweatdropped. "Um… I don't think our backs would've handled any of that."

"Yeah…" Groose nodded.

"Are we really that strong?" Yunobo wondered.

"Oh come now, Zelda." Revali walked over to them. "You're being impolite. What's one Goron hug gonna do? I'll prove it to ya."

"Thank you!" Yunobo smiled and gave Revali a hug… and a sickening pop was heard.

"YAAAAAAGH!" Revali yelled.

"Oh my goodness!" Mipha exclaimed and then Yunobo pulled away as Revali fell to the ground.

"Ugh… what does this kid _eat?__" _Revali groaned as Mipha knelt down and started healing him up. "Ugh… thanks."

Mipha nodded. "It was my pleasure."

"Huh… well, we Gorons don't know our own strength…" Yunobo mused.

"We're not that bad, are we?" A Goron wondered.

"Well, we did cripple that one Hylian girl who wanted to give us a hug at Rito Village…" Another Goron pointed out.

"Ooooh… riiiiight… I forgot about that."

Lana sweatdropped. "How could you forget that?"

"So what happened here? What happened to Death Mountain and where is Darunia and Daruk?" Zelda asked.

"Well, everything was fine until the day when Kakariko Village was attacked. Then it all fell apart… a strange dragon came by about a day later claiming he's taking over Death Mountain. The strongest Gorons tried to fight back but they were no match. Not even Darunia or Daruk were able to beat him. He said they weren't worthy enough to fight him and locked them in cells. Although… he's not really cruel. He often feeds them so they won't starve."

"A dragon that's honorable?" Impa wondered. "Hmm… where is this dragon?"

"No one knows where he is." Yunobo said. "I often visit the caves to talk with them before I leave. I don't want to be taken away by that man…"

"He's a man?" Zelda tilted her head.

"He's a man that can turn into a dragon."

"So is he Hylian?" Groose asked. "A Gerudo?"

"No one knows…" Yunobo shrugged. "But, I can show you where they're held up. Come on! …Just one question. What's with the pack of the Lynels?"

"They joined the Hyrule Warriors." Zelda said.

"You guys tamed LYNELS?! Daruk's gonna be jealous… he's been trying that for years!" He exclaimed and then he guided them around Death Mountain until they found a cave entrance that was overlooking a sea of lava, or in this case, a sea of dried up lava. Yunobo rolled over a rock and walked in with the rest following in, seeing a bunch of Gorons behind bars.

"Oh my goodness…" Zelda whispered.

Impa's fists clenched. "This is unacceptable." She said and stormed out, unsheathing her sword.

"Impa, wait a minute!" Paya exclaimed before sighing. "And… she's off."

"We can worry about that later." Zelda said as they walked around the cells.

"This is awful…" Lana whispered.

"We need to find a key. Where's a key when you need one?" Navi wondered.

"There is a key…" A voice said as they turned to the source, turning out to be Darunia. "But Volga has it."

"Volga?" Zelda asked.

"He's the dragon controlling the area." Darunia said. "Unfortunately, none of us could beat him. I thought I could take him out with the Megaton Hammer, but… sadly, I was mistaken. Daruk didn't last long either."

"How has he kept you alive all these years?" Lana asked. "This doesn't make sense… usually villains would like taunt you in the cell and leave you for dead, right? At least, that's what I read…"

"He's an honorable warrior." A voice said as they saw Daruk in a different cell. "I have to hand it to him, he's fierce… but he's honorable. It felt like he was holding back…" He mused. "He said something about how we aren't fighting to our full potential or something."

"This doesn't make sense… a bad guy who's honorable? That's a load of Lynel crap!" Revali exclaimed, hearing a few offended grunts from some Lynels who heard it. "Oh, bug off!"

"Where is he now?" Zelda asked.

"No one knows." Daruk replied. "All we know is that he comes in and gives us food at random times of the day."

"We'll just have to look." Groose said and then they heard the sound of a dragon roaring.

"That sounds close." Zelda said and then ran off.

* * *

_Meanwhile__…_

"Nnngh!" Impa fell on one knee as she was glaring at a dragon that was towering before her.

"Is this really the best you can do!" The dragon taunted.

Impa used her sword to support herself and got up. "Agh… I'm getting too old for this shit…" Impa grumbled as the dragon landed on the ground before turning back into his human form, and then Volga walked over to her.

"To think that the greatest Sheikah warrior in Hyrule history wouldn't even be considered a challenge. You're weak."

"I'm… not weak!" Impa growled as she quickly slashed at him, but he blocked the blade with his hand with a smirk.

"Hmph." He quickly punched her in the gut and then used an uppercut to knock the Sheikah woman in the air as he flew up and then axe kicked her to the ground. "These years have not been kind to you, Impa. I've heard tales of the fiercest Sheikah warrior in Hyrule… how you've slain foes in the blink of an eye. Moblins, Hinoxes, Lynels… you even slain Argorok, the most dangerous dragon that terrorized Hyrule! And here you are standing before me. Age has caught up to you. I can see wrinkles underneath your eyes. Your winter years are upon you. You are not in your prime anymore. I looked forward to this battle but I'm met with disappointment."

"Keep talking…" Impa readied her sword. "I still have plenty of fight in me left! I, Impa… the greatest Sheikah in Hyrule… will strike you down and save Hyrule from Link's wicked rule! You, along with many others stand in my way… and I will see to it that I will live to see Hyrule back in prosperity! I'll be damned if I die right now!"

Volga chuckled. "Then give me all you got. Show me the power that you once had!"

"With pleasure!" Impa took a step back, closed her eyes and concentrated before opening her eyes. "HAAAAAAH!" She yelled, quickly slashing through him and standing behind him. "Checkmate." She said with a smirk, when suddenly she coughed out blood and held on to her stomach as she turned around to see Volga with one of his hands turned dragonic, and blood dripped from his claws.

"You're quick… just not quick enough." Volga turned to her. "You're past your prime… a shell of your former self."

Impa fell on her hands and knees, coughing out blood and glared at him, slowly getting up. "I will… kill you… I will… help Zelda save Hyrule… to my last breath!"

Volga walked over to Impa. "Zelda won't save you. If that girl can't defeat Link, then what chance does she have against a dragon?" He chuckled and raised his claw up in the air as Impa stumbled and fell in front of her. "This is the end for you…. _Sheikah Warrior.__" _He swung his arm down, when suddenly an ice wall got between him and Impa. "What?!"

"Impa!" Zelda came running over, her Ice Rod in her hand.

Impa chuckled. "Nice timing." She said as Zelda skidded next to her and checked her wound, having a grim look on her face.

"Groose, Navi! Take Impa to Mipha. I'll handle things here."

"You got it!" Navi exclaimed as Groose helped her up.

"Come on, grandma. Let's go." Groose said, putting her hand over his shoulder.

"I'm… not an old lady…!" Impa scolded while she hobbled over to the others and then Volga destroyed the Ice Wall.

"Ah… if it isn't the Heroine of Hyrule." Volga smirked as Zelda unsheathed her sword.

"Your reign of terror ends here." Zelda told him.

"I've heard tales about you… how his highness killed you… and yet, here you stand before me five years later. Tell me… are you as strong as they say?"

"Want to find out for yourself? I'll gladly take you on."

Volga chuckled. "Give me all you got. I want to see your true strength! A battle worth remembering! Show me your true POWER!"

Zelda got in her stance, strapping her shield to her arm and the Triforce of Courage shined brightly on her wrist. "Let's go."

Zelda and Volga charged at each other and Zelda slashed at him, but Volga ducked and kicked her in the stomach and then struck her down with his hand turning into a claw, but Zelda got back up and jumped back, using a Skyward Strike to hit Volga which he retaliated by throwing a fireball at her, which she used Nayru's Love to reflect it back. He then breathed fire at her, which she pulled out her Ice Staff after blocking it with her shield and firing ice at him, both of them colliding but his fire grew weaker from the ice. Volga sprouted wings and then breathed fire at Zelda from the air, forcing her to roll out of the way and brought out her Crossbow, firing a few Ice Arrows at his wings, striking them and forcing him to come down.

Volga got back up, summoning his Dragon Spear and then lunging at her, attempting to stab her, but she blocked with her shield and then used Farore's Wind to teleport behind him and then ran over to him, striking him from behind and then slashing him, but Volga turned around and blocked with his spear before stabbing her a few times with his spear and then used an uppercut with his hand, where he then breathed fire at her, but she used Nayru's Love to block it and then she landed in front of him, pulling out her Ice Rod and firing icicles at him which he blocked with his spear as she ran over and quickly attacked him, before he kicked her away, then Zelda ran over and jumped over him, using Helm Splitter to knock him over and landing on her feet.

Volga chuckled. "I haven't had a fight like this in ages… yes…! This is the fight I've been looking for!" He exclaimed as he turned around and lunged his spear, but she blocked it with her shield and then her hand burst into flames and then punched the ground, creating an explosion to knock Volga away and then suddenly, her hand was shrouded in darkness, charging up an attack and swung her arm forward as a Phantom came flying out and struck Volga, where Zelda swung her arm repeatedly as the Phantom swung its sword with Zelda's movements as she even made it block Volga's attacks. Volga let out a chuckle and then transformed into his dragon form and breathed fire at the Phantom, as Zelda used the shield arm to have the Phantom block it, but it was overwhelmed by the flames and was struck down, and then Volga crushed it with its claws to destroy it.

Zelda clenched her teeth, scowling at Volga and quickly used a few Skyward Strikes to hit him, but Volga brushed them off as he flew over and grabbed Zelda with his claws, pinning her down as he smirked and his mouth glowed. Zelda reached into her pocket and pulled out her crossbow, shooting him in the mouth with an Ice Arrow as he roared in agony and loosened his grip on the Hylian as she used the Master Sword to strike his leg as he roared, letting her go as she rolled out of the way and got back up, only to get struck with a massive fireball that knocked her to a wall, and then Volga rammed into Zelda, grabbing her with his claws and started squeezing her before flying up and throwing her down into the ground, as she tried to use Farore's Wind but was interrupted by another fireball hitting her and slammed into the ground.

Zelda got up, but then a sharp pain hit her back as she hissed in agony, putting her hands on her knees, she pulled out a red potion and drank it as she stood up straight and put the bottle in her pocket, her back feeling better and then looked up at the dragon, pulling out her crossbow and firing ice arrows, but Volga swiftly avoided the ice arrows as he came down to try and crush her, but she rolled out of the way right as Volga slammed into the ground, having some rocks fly and one hit Zelda in the gut to have her keel over, making her wince, but she shook it off and used her Ice Rod to counter the fire that was thrown at her, and then Zelda jumped to the side and ran toward him as Volga attempted to slash her with his claws but Zelda jumped to the side and jumped over, using Helm Splitter again and landed on his back.

Volga roared and then attempted to get her off of him, shaking her off but she held on and then impaled him in the back as he roared in agony before bumping her off, having her land on the ground but she got up as Volga towered over her and roared, but Zelda aimed her crossbow and fired another Ice Arrow in his mouth, causing him to roar in pain before he collapsed and then turned back into his human form. "This… this is a glorious battle!" He exclaimed.

"Glad you're having fun." Zelda said as he pulled out his spear and the two of them charged at each other, readying their weapons and slashed each other, their weapons clashing and both of them stared at each other before Zelda kicked him in the knee and then slashed upward to disarm him before grabbing his dragon spear and aimed it at him before she quickly impaled him a few times with the spear before Volga grabbed the spear and pulled it away from her as he jumped back, before the two of them charged at each other again and then slashed through each other, both of them standing still… when Volga coughed out blood before falling on his knees in defeat as Zelda sheathed the Master Sword.

"I… I haven't had a fight like that in ages… heheheh… you truly are the Heroine of Hyrule… go ahead… kill me."

"Why would I kill someone who fought honorably?" Zelda asked. "You were strong, and I could tell you put everything in your attacks… but what I want to know, is why you fight honorably and not use dirty underhanded tricks like all the other enemies I've fought?"

Volga chuckled. "I am an honorable dragon warrior… I want a fair fight, not a one-sided fight that I could win easily… your strength, your power… I could tell this was a fight to remember… and I lost. Kill me, it is the only way I can be free from this land."

"Why? Why do you want me to kill you?"

"Because… I'm serving under that horrible man… I refuse to call him my king."

"Link?"

"Yes… there is no honor in him. When he came to me five years ago, I refused to aid him in his cause… so he challenged me to battle, and knowing how I love a good challenge, I accepted… but he tricked me in that fight and before I knew it, he defeated me. He gave me an ultimatum… either I serve under him or my family perishes."

"You have a family?"

"Yes. I wish to see them before I die…" Volga got up but fell on his knees. "Nnngh! Looks like… I won't make it…"

Suddenly, Zelda picked him up, putting his arm over her shoulder. "Come on, let's go see your family." She said as Volga looked at him in surprise before chuckling.

"Very well." Volga chuckled as the two of them walked over to Volga's domain, with the help of Volga guiding her to his destination. "Zelda… I am surprised you still don't have it in you to kill me."

"I only kill when it is necessary… I'm not a cold blooded murderer unlike Link. Killing you is not on my agenda… especially considering you are a valiant warrior." Zelda smiled. "Perhaps when this war is over, maybe the two of us could spar together."

Volga's eyes widened through his helmet. "You don't see me as a villain?"

"No. I do not."

Volga chuckled. "You are too kind…" He said as they climbed up a small hill.

"Volga, I have a proposition for you."

"Hmm?"

"After we get you patched up… how would you like to fight with us instead? You're a powerful dragon and you might just be a powerful ally. What do you say to that?"

Volga let out a hearty laugh. "Oh, that doesn't sound too bad… I'll think about that." He chuckled as they got to the top and looked over to see a few dragons playing in the area.

"Are these your kids?"

"No, only one of them is mine." Volga pointed to the distance, where a dragon was pinning another dragon to the ground. "See that dragon on top of that other dragon? That is my son, Volvagia."

Zelda looked at him in awe. "That's your son? Incredible!"

"Indeed." Volga chuckled.

"Who's the mother? Where is she?"

Volga scowled. "Remember when I said Link was dishonorable? He killed my wife behind my back. She was a pacifist… a true mother who only knew love and compassion… and he killed her behind my back. I begged him not to kill my son and he agreed to it. He's the only thing I have left…"

"So you fight because he'll kill your son if you don't?"

"Yes…" Volga clenched his fists. "Remember when I said I'd think about it? To hell with it… I'll join your cause. I'll burn Hyrule Castle if it's the last thing I'd do."

Zelda smiled. "Glad to have you on board."

Volga nodded. "Let's go kill those bastards." He smirked, when suddenly a sword went through his abdomen as he let out a pained yell as Zelda gasped in horror.

"Volga!"

"Tch… you're useless." A voice said as Zelda turned her head to see Ghirahim planting his sword through Volga before removing the sword and then Volga fell over.

"NO!" Zelda yelled as she quickly caught him and cradled him in her arms. "No… stay with me!"

Volga could only look at Zelda and reached for her hand. "F-Free… Free the Gorons…" He whispered and then his hand fell limp.

"Volga…" Zelda whispered, a tear escaping her eye. "VOLGA!"

Ghirahim chuckled. "Planning on betraying us, were you? Your honor was your downfall…" He said and then turned his attention to Zelda. "Well now… isn't this the perfect oppor-" Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Zelda aimed her crossbow at him, armed with a Bomb Arrow, not even looking as there was a shadow over her eyes, and then she pulled the trigger, blasting Ghirahim away as Zelda was singed from the fire… but as far as she was concerned, she didn't even care. "Argh!"

Ghirahim got back up, glaring at her. "Did you seriously fire that Bomb Arrow at me just like that?! Right in the middle of my monologue?! Who does that?!"

Zelda got up, glaring at him with tears in her eyes. "You are truly despicable, you know that?! You _AND _Link!" She readied her Master Sword. "Tell your master I send my regards!" She exclaimed, slashing him but he caught the blade in his hands, but Fi suddenly shot out and then axe kicked Ghirahim away.

"Nnngh! Fi!" Ghirahim snarled. "Just as annoying as ever!"

"Ghriahim, still as rotten as ever."

"Looking at you after all these years… it make me furious… it makes me outraged… IT MAKES SICK WITH ANGER!" He yelled.

"Still holding a grudge, I see." Fi folded her arms.

Ghirahim chuckled and then sheathed his sword. "This is not the proper place for a battle. In due time, we will meet again and I will destroy you. You _and _Zelda."

"We'll look forward to that." Fi said. "We will see to it that you and Link are destroyed."

Ghirahim laughed. "You've been sleeping for five years, Link has gotten stronger over the years."

"Then I'll just have to overpower him." Zelda told him.

"Heh… we'll see. 'Till we meet again." Ghirahim said before disappearing.

Fi turned to Zelda. "Come on, let's save the Gorons."

* * *

_Sometime later__…_

"FREEDOOOOOOOM!" Daruk yelled as all the Gorons cheered triumphantly and hugged one another, while Zelda was near a grave she dug for Volga, complete with some flowers that were native to Death Mountain.

"He was an honorable dragon… can't believe he was killed from a cowardly attack." Lana muttered. "He would've made a good ally."

"He really would have…" Zelda sighed as she stood up, clasping her hands together. "Goddesses, please watch over this man…" She prayed.

Groose put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure they will." He smiled.

Zelda nodded. "Yeah."

"I think we gotta train ya up a little more." Purah teased.

"Yeah, considering the dragon knocked you around like you were nothing!" Paya giggled.

"Oh ha ha... I'm still the same Impa as before."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes." Impa nodded.

"Hmm, I wouldn't push it though. You're lucky the injury wasn't life threatening." Mipha advised.

"I'll see to it that Zelda accomplishes her mission, no matter what." Impa told her.

Daruk and Darunia walked over to them. "So, the Hyrule Warriors, huh?" Darunia asked.

"Yes, that is what we're calling ourselves." Ruto nodded.

"Good, because we want in!" Daruk grinned. "We're not taking no for an answer."

"Well, welcome aboard. I was gonna ask you anyway." Zelda grinned.

"Good! Come here, sister!" Daruk picked her up.

"Wait wait wait! No no, I'm not rea-AAAAAAAAGH!" Zelda cried, her back being crushed by his hug.

"No! No! I refuse to hug you!" Groose exclaimed. "I need my personal spaaaaAAAAAACE! AAAGH!" Groose cried after Darunia hugged him.

Mipha sweatdropped. "Oh dear..."

"Brothers! To arms! We are going to take Hyrule back and our mountain from that dastardly Link!" Daruk declared as Darunia pulled out his Megaton Hammer.

"TO WAR!" Darunia yelled as the Gorons let out a war cry.

"So, to the forest next?" Lana asked.

"Yes." Zelda nodded as they took off, with the Gorons following them.

* * *

**Man, Yoshi's Island is a lot of fun...**

**Oh! Sorry, I got distracted by the SNES Online... Anyway, y'all are probably wondering about what I think about Banjo. He's actually a lot of fun to play as and his Spirit battles were fun too! (Gruntilda can suck it though... then again, I always struggle against Dedede...)**

**Also, let it be known that Sakurai almost killed a man when Sans was revealed. Seriously, I was worried TomFawkes was gonna pass out there...**

**Before I get into the SNES Online, let me talk about a few things that I didn't mention in my Touhou Galaxy chapter.**

**First off, Astral Chain is a lot of FUN. I'm at the part where I took out Jena's huge Homunculus and Yoseph wiped my criminal history clean. I love my twin sister... Akira rocks.**

**I also saw the CGI remake of the Lion King. It's... eh... it's okay. The animated movie was better. I mean , really... they ruined Be Prepared, they ruined the most powerful scene of all time with Simba talking to his dead father... and they ruined the Luau scene. (Although, I did laugh at the Beauty and the Beast reference. Never really understood why no one likes the Live Action Beauty and the Beast... I thought it was awesome!) Rafiki was also... bland. They took out his silly quirkiness with... ugh, they made him boring!**

**Also, how did Shenzi survive? Nala threw her into the fire and there she was confronting Scar as if nothing happened to her. Like, what the heck?**

**Honestly, Aladdin was a lot better. I just hope they don't ruin Mulan, AKA the best Disney movie of all time... but seeing as how there no songs and no Mushu... I'm not so eager...**

**Anyway, I think I got everything... Now on to the SNES Online. It's a lot of fun and I tried out a handful of games.**

**Super Mario Kart was alright, it didn't really age well since... well... look how Mario Kart changed over the years. F-Zero was pretty fun, I can see why people want a new F-Zero game now. Stunt Race FX... ugh, that was really hard on the eyes, not to mention really hard to control. I don't know what Andre sees in that game...**

**Pilotwings was interesting, but the game doesn't really tell you how to brake when you land the plane... or maybe it does and I glossed over it by accident. Kirby's Dream Course is... a thing. Didn't even last five minutes. Super Mario World, I played for five minutes and got out of it because I wanted to try Yoshi's Island for the first time.**

**Hoooo boy, that game is fun! The final boss was also intense... and thank goodness for the rewind feature because for some reason, Yoshi suddenly got slippery and kept falling off... oh, and throwing eggs at Bowser was a bit awkward. I would either overshoot it, or throw it up so high, I'd kill a random Toady off screen, like... What's all THAT nonsense?! But anyway, Yoshi's Island was fun... though I don't have it in me to 100% the levels to play the secret levels. If Crafted World taught me anything, it's that 100%-ing a Yoshi game is an absolute nightmare. Ugh... stupid collectibles...**

**Anyway, now that I'm done with that, I'm wondering what I should tackle next after finishing Astral Chain and doing my Banjo run in World of Light. I have my eyes set on Kirby's Adventure 3, Super Mario World, Super Metroid and A Link to the Past. I'm honestly leaning towards Kirby, but we'll see.**


	19. Humiliating Wizzro

****************Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.****************

****************To Guest: I had BoTW Link and Zelda in mind for the story. Thanks for asking! ****************

* * *

"Brrr, it's a bit cold down here." Daruk said as they had descended Death Mountain.

"Not used to the temperature?" Zelda teased as she got back on Epona.

"I've been off the mountain a few times and I've never gotten used to the colder air down here."

"Maybe you need to get out more." Ruto tease.

"Hmm, maybe I do." Daruk chuckled. "So where is this forest anyway?"

"It should be this way." Zelda said as they walked through the Hylian Fields as a group of Bokoblins tried to attack them, but when they saw the army of Lynels and Gorons, they hightailed it out of there and hid behind bushes.

"That's strange, usually Bokoblins are idiots." Groose mused.

"Try the army of Lynels." Lana giggled.

"Or the Gorons." Impa added.

"Yeah, that'll do it." Zelda chuckled as they kept walking when they noticed a Guardian walking around and then turned its head, glaring at the army before it. "Oh great…"

"Don't worry, we'll take care of this no sweat!" Daruk cracked his knuckles. "Fellow Gorons! To arms!"

The Gorons got into position as Darunia took out his Megaton Hammer as the Guardian got into position and charged up its laser as the Gorons started rolling and slammed into the Guardian to topple it over and fired its laser into the sky as Daruk picked it up and threw it against a rock while Darunia jumped in the air and slammed his Megaton Hammer into its head to crush it before swinging it into another rock wall to destroy it, then it exploded.

"YEAH! That's how we Gorons do it!" Daruk exclaimed as they started cheering in their Goron language.

"Oh yeah, these guys are perfect." Zelda chuckled.

"Yup."

"Brothers! In the sky!" A Goron exclaimed, pointing up in the air as they saw a flying Guardian watching them all, and when it realized it was spotted, it panicked and quickly flew off in the other direction.

"Yeah, you better run!" Darunia chuckled.

"Well, guess we won't have to worry about that." Lana said.

"True." Impa nodded and then they got to the forest when they noticed some of the forest was leveled.

"No… what happened here?!"Zelda exclaimed.

"It was about three years ago when Link wanted to see what was beyond the Lost Woods, so he cut a path until he found his way into Kokiri Village and Ordon Village. He stationed Wizzro there to keep an eye on the Kokiri and Ordonians." Lana explained.

"Who's Wizzro?" Zelda asked.

"A dark wizard who conveniently showed up after you were put into the Slumber of Restoration." Paya explained. "He showed up around the same time as Link found Ghirahim. He is a dark mage who uses darkness as his powers."

"Darkness as his powers…" Zelda sweatdropped. "Why do I feel like that, in some universe, the darkness will become so cliche and convoluted, it'll take about thirteen sequels or so to complete the story arc…"

"Eh? That's oddly specific." Groose said.

"Sorry, just thinking out loud." Zelda sheepishly said. "So, let's head in."

"Right." Groose nodded as they walked into the cut down forest, walking along the trail until they got into Ordon Village.

"Something about this place is… heartbreaking." Mipha quietly said.

"Last time Groose and I were here, it was peaceful… now… not so much." Zelda said.

"Let's spread out. We'll definitely find some answers in this village… and hopefully find someone." Impa suggested as they nodded and walked around, where Zelda knocked on a door… where it fell over inside.

"Oops." Zelda paled a bit.

"Who's there?" A voice asked as footsteps approached the Hylian girl. "Who are you?"

"I'm Zelda… who are you?"

"I am the mayor of this village. Mayor Bo… or at least, I used to be."

"Used to be?"

"Long ago, there was an usurpation of power. He took it by force… now that Wizzro fella controls this place and Kokiri Forest. Adding insult to injury, our Skull Kid friend vanished. He usually leaves us alone but he protects us when we are in trouble… or when he wants to chat with someone if he's bored. When Wizzro attacked… Skull Kid didn't lay a finger, which is very peculiar. When we were attacked by Wolfos, he sent them packing… but he didn't help us out. I found that odd."

"Did anyone try to fight Wizzro?"

"Yes… but the rebellion was short lived. There are not many of us anymore. We used to be thriving and now our two villages are on the verge of extinction. In our village, there's me, Talo, and my daughter Ilia… as for the Kokiri, Saria and Mido remain."

"Oh my goodness!" Zelda whispered. "That's horrible! He killed them all?"

"It's either we were too overconfident in our abilities, or he's too powerful. Then again, most of us attacked him with pitchforks and torches…"

"We'll handle him. You stay here."

"What good of a mayor am I if I led my people as if they were sheep to slaughter." He started tearing up. "Oh, I am a horrible leader!"

"Don't beat yourself up. You underestimated him. The fact that you are alive proves that the fight is not over." Zelda reassured him and then turned around. "Rest up… the battle of Hyrule has just begun."

"Battle of… Hyrule?" Bo wondered, but Zelda walked away, not saying a word after that.

_That was well said, master. Words of encouragement is something all of Hyrule needs. _Fi said within the sword.

"I know. Something tells me the incoming battle will be the biggest battle in history." Zelda responded as she kept walking off and noticed Lana and Groose chatting with a teenage boy near a lake with a bandana over his eyes.

"I was the one who led the fight…" The boy muttered. "I thought a rebellion would turn the tides and kick him out of our home, our mayor was all over the idea… and now look what happened. My friends, family, loved ones… all of us were killed. I'm responsible for this… and I'm not sure how I managed to walk away with no eyesight…"

Lana frowned. "Just because you're still alive and lost everything doesn't mean that your fight is over."

"How can I avenge everyone if I can't see at all?! I don't even know who you look like! The fact that I'm one of the few alive proves that I'm a failure…"

"You're not a failure. It was just… uh… a major setback?" Groose scratched his head, earning an elbow from Lana. "Ooof!"

"Talo, it's okay." Lana said. "No one expects anything in battle, since it is unpredictable and doesn't go the way that you want. You shouldn't blame yourself. The fact that you started a rebellion is really awesome."

"Easy for you to say…"

Zelda approached the three. "Down in the dumps?" She asked.

"Yes… not only did I lead everyone to die, I lost my eyesight and even though everyone keeps saying it's not my fault, I feel like it is."

"I'll tell you who's at fault…" Zelda turned her head away. "It's Link, he's the one who's responsible for all this."

"Well… tell that Link guy that if I ever met him, I'll kill him." Talo grumbled. "I'll kill him and gut him with everything I have…"

Zelda chuckled. "Well, for now, you need your rest. We'll deal with Wizzro."

"Give 'im a good wallop for me!"

"I will." Zelda nodded and then walked off along with Lana and Groose.

"Wow! I'm proud of you! You didn't blame yourself!" Lana smiled.

"Truth be told, I didn't want him to think it was me who was responsible for all this." Zelda sighed. "Had I known Link was going to be like this, I would've helped him… ya know, be less optimistic about being a dictator?"

"No one knew Link was going to do this, Zelda. You shouldn't blame yourself." Lana told her.

"But I was his best friend! If he had told me something was wrong, I would've helped him. Whenever one of us was having a bad day, either of us would go into the other's homes and start venting before crying on one of our shoulders…" She sighed. "Now he's turned into this… cruel dictator and the only way to help is by…" She didn't want to finish her sentence.

Groose put a hand on her shoulder. "I know… but hey, there are a lot of other shoulders you can cry on, like mine."

"Smooth." Lana teased.

"What?"

Zelda giggled. "Thanks, Groose."

"Ah, don't mention it."

"Okay… so, where in the world is Kokiri Village? Wizzro's probably over there." Zelda mused.

_"__Allow me." _Fi popped out of the sword.

"You know where it's at?" Groose asked.

"Of course. The Master Sword was resting near the villages, after all. I would occasionally visit to stretch my legs."

Zelda raised an eyebrow. "You got out of the Master Sword while it was resting in front of the Great Deku Tree?"

"Hey, even spirits need to get out and enjoy the fresh air every once in a while." Fi smiled a bit. "It's this way." She led them to the Kokiri Forest, where Impa noticed them after checking out an abandoned home.

"Purah, you and the rest of the Warriors stay here. We don't need to draw too much attention to ourselves."

Purah sweatdropped. "Kind of impossible when you got Lynels and the Zoras playing in the pond." She said, pointing to the pond as they saw Lynels and the Zoras splashing each other.

"Even Lynels need to cool down every once in a while." Impa said as she walked off, where she was joined by Mipha. "Oh? You want to join too?"

"Just in case if things get dire, you'd probably need a healer." Mipha smiled as they joined the foursome on their small hike through the woods until they saw an entrance in the shape of a tree trunk.

"In here is the Kokiri Village." Fi said and turned to the others. "I should warn you, the Kokiri are a bit… shall we say, small."

"Ah, I'm sure it's nothing." Groose said as they walked into the village, where they saw homes destroyed and some trees lying on the pathway.

"Heartbreaking…" Fi whispered as they wandered around the village.

"Oh my, this is sad…" Lana quietly said.

"Who are you!" A voice yelled as they saw a Kokiri marching up to them, but he didn't look happy. "What are you doing in Kokiri Village! I don't even recognize you from Ordon Village!"

"Mido, don't you remember me?" Fi asked.

"Eh? You look familiar… uh… is it Faye? Maya?"

"Fi."

"Don't remember a Fi."

Fi sweatdropped. "Typical."

Groose looked at Mido and measured himself, and then Mido, where Mido stood just at his belly. _Huh, they__'__re midgets. _He thought to himself.

"I'll have you know that you're trespassing! Now get out of my sight or else-"

"Mido, what's going on?" A voice asked as a young Kokiri woman walked over to them.

"Hello Saria." Fi greeted.

"Fi? Oh my goodness, is that really you?" Saria asked and then smiled. "Mido, stand down, they're friends."

"Eh? I don't trust them."

"But I do." Saria walked over to them. "You have to forgive him, he's a little on edge because of what happened all those years ago… not to mention that Wizzro is still around. We used to be a prosperous race… and now… we, like the Ordonians, are nearly extinct."

"Where's Wizzro?" Impa asked.

"No one knows where he is… but when he's gone, someone else takes his place." Saria mentioned.

"Who would that be?" Lana asked.

"Well…"

"Oi! What are these outsiders doing in my forest!" A voice called out.

Saria groaned. "Oh great… not now…" She turned around. "Nothing! We were just asking them to leave!" She turned around and mouthed "Help us. Please."

Zelda nodded. "Ready, Fi?"

"Ready." Fi nodded, going into the Master Sword as everyone readied their weapons as they moved closer to the source.

"They're not leaving! They're moving in the opposite direction! That's the opposite of leaving! The exit is THAT way! Argh! Fine, I'll kick you out myself!"

A dark orb was thrown at the gang, but Zelda got in position and quickly deflected it away with the Hylian Shield. "Show yourself!" Zelda ordered.

"Aww, do I have to? Fiiiiine."

The voice appeared in front of them, which was none other than the Skull Kid himself. "Hellooooo!"

"Skull Kid?!" Zelda and Groose exclaimed.

"Hmm? Do I know you two? You don't look familiar at all."

"Either he has short term memory loss or he's an enemy." Impa pulled out her sword. "Either way, we'll cut him down."

"Wait, don't!" Saria yelled. "Wizzro brainwashed him! He doesn't remember his friends at all!"

"Brainwashed? Oh come now, Susie. I don't even know what that is."

Saria sighed. "It's Saria…"

"Eh, whatever! I'll just take you down! Tatl! Tael! Let's knock their blocks off and have a laugh!"

"Right!"

"Let's do this!"

Skull Kid quickly launched dark orbs at them, forcing them to dodge as Zelda aimed her hand at him, her hand bursting into flame. "I don't want to do this… but you're leaving us with no other choice!" She exclaimed, throwing Din's Fire at him, but Skull Kid gracefully dodged it.

"Missed me!" He exclaimed, only to get hit by a Lightning spell from Lana. "YOOOOWCH!"

"Gotcha." Lana smirked, then Skull Kid floated over to them and kicked them all around, throwing dark orbs at them all and then firing a small laser at Impa, but she blocked it with her sword, all the while Skull Kid was laughing creepily.

"Laugh while you still can!" Impa exclaimed as she ran over and slashed him repeatedly, but he dodged every attack, unaware of Mipha summoning water with her trident and then launched a wave of water at him to knock him over, and then Lana used another lightning spell.

"Hehehehehahahahahaha!" Skull Kid laughed creepily and flew over, and did a twirling kick and Tatl and Tael twirled with him, cutting down Groose but he got back up and slashed him but Skull Kid disarmed him by kicking the sword off of him. "I disarmed you! What are you gonna-" Groose punched him in the face. "OOOF!" He grunted as Groose punched him a few times, delivering a few hooks and then using an uppercut to knock him up in the air.

Zelda looked surprise. "Whoa… where did you-"

Groose grinned. "What? You thought I didn't learn hand to hand combat after all these years? You can thank Queen Nabooru!" He said, picking his sword back up while Skull Kid got up, dazed for a few seconds.

"Ooof… why is the world spinning…" He shook his head as he looked up to see a fireball coming at him and exploded in point blank range. "ARGH!"

"Sorry!" Zelda winced as she raised the Master Sword in the air and quickly used a Skyward Strike to knock him down after he was brushing off the flames, then Lana conjured up some blocks as she went over and bounced off the walls before jumping up and casting another lightning spell on him to knock him over and then Impa got into position and slashed through him to seal the deal, knocking him down.

"Still got it." Impa said as she put her sword away, only to hear groaning as Skull Kid got up, rubbing his head.

"Ooof… what in the world happened to me…?"

Impa reached for her sword, but Zelda reached her arm out to block her from attacking. "Skull Kid?"

"Urgh…" Skull Kid turned around. "Oh! Hello Zelda! Hello Groose! …Wait a second, where are my Kokiri friends?"

"Over here!" Saria waved over to him.

"Saria! Murphy!"

"That's not even CLOSE to Mido!" Mido complained.

"…Wait, where's the rest of the Kokiri?"

Saria sighed. "You might want to sit down… it's a long story."

* * *

_One story later__…_

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?! I did all of that?!" Skull Kid exclaimed.

"Do you remember anything before that fateful day?" Impa asked.

"Hmm, I recall hearing something when I was dancing around in the Lost Woods… when I checked it out, everything went dark after that. Next thing I know, I wake up and see you guys… and having a bad headache…" He muttered. "So, I helped Wizzro kill the Ordonians and the Kokiri?" He asked. "I'm surprised I let Mido live given how much of a brat he is."

"HEY! I'm not that much of a brat!"

"You bribed the Ordonians five Korok Seeds in order to pass through the gateway." Saria told him.

"That was one time! ONE!" Mido groaned.

"Let's not forget about the time you took Ilia's horse for a joyride."

"What? She wasn't using it!"

"Or that time when you let all the goats loose in Ordon Village?"

"Hey, that one Ordonian made me angry!"

Zelda sweatdropped. "Good Hylia… I remember Bo mentioning that he didn't know where Skull Kid was and Wizzro wiped out the whole rebellion…" She mused. "And yet, Skull Kid was helping him?"

"To be fair, he _was _hit on the head, so he most likely doesn't remember much aside from the slaughter." Saria mused.

"I have to apologize to the Ordonians… or what's left of them." Skull Kid sighed. "Still… I want to get back at Wizzro, but I don't know where he is!"

"We do, actually." Tatl said. "We weren't brainwashed, we were just following orders otherwise Wizzro would kill us."

"Exactly." Tael nodded. "We know where he is."

Impa looked at the two fairies. "Where is he now?"

* * *

_At Gerudo Town__…_

"Hah… hah…" Ganondorf panted, holding on to his sword.

"I must admit, I did not expect you to hold on for all these years. You truly are the great warrior of Gerudo Valley." Wizzro mused. "You, along with your troops, wiped out Molduga. You took out Molgera, Twinmold, and all the other monsters I threw at you."

"That is because… I refuse to let Gerudo Valley fall to the likes of you."

"And yet, your troops are weakening. Look around you." He said as Ganondorf looked around, seeing his forces on the ground completely exhausted. "I even threw a possessed Zant at you and all you did was knock him out and come back to his senses. These past five years, you took out my beasts, my minions… and you still want to fight? You've been fighting for the past five years, day after day, and your army is wiped out. Your best women are exhausted… and that beast you threw at me, Vah Naboris… heh… not even that could stop me!"

Ganondorf grunted, weakly getting up and looking around. His wife was on the ground, being taken care of by a medic, Riju was leaning on a wall to catch her breath, Koume and Kotake had turned into Twinrova but even she was on her knees, even the Twili were exhausted as Zant was sprawled on the ground and Midna was leaning on to a Twili Wolf to support herself… and then there was Urbosa, who was sitting on the ground and holding on to her wounded abdomen.

"Your forces were tough, I will admit… but this has gone on long enough." Wizzro said. "You think you can win? You think you can stop Link from taking over all of Hyrule?"

"Listen to me carefully… I am the greatest Gerudo warrior… and I will see to it, that I will defend my kingdom with everything I have! If Link thinks he can take over Gerudo Valley, I will stick my sword through his chest if he sets one foot into Gerudo Valley!"

"Those are just empty words. You have lost."

Ganondorf stood strong, readying his sword. "No. I'm just getting started." He smirked and let out a war cry and slashed at Wizzro, but he flew back and fired a dark laser that knocked him down. "Argh!"

"Honey!" Nabooru cried and hissed a bit, holding on to her stomach.

"Easy, your highness! You shouldn't reopen the wound!" The medic warned.

"Nnngh… dammit…" Midna got up as best as she could. "I have to… save that damned knucklehead…" She tried to walk but found herself falling. "Nngh… stupid ankle…!"

"I will make an example out of you… show Hyrule that even the great king of Gerudo Valley perished underneath Link's reign!" Wizzro raised a dark orb in his hand. "Any last words?"

Ganondorf glared at him, but noticed something behind Wizzro and let out a chuckle. "What's so funny?" Wizzro asked.

"You're too cocky for your own good. If you even care, you would notice something is behind you."

"Hmm?" Wizzro turned around and saw a massive dust cloud. "Bah, that's just a measly sandstorm. Nothing to worry about."

"Did I say behind you? I meant above you."

"Stop stalling and take your death with dig-" An arrow landed near him. "-Nity… hmm?" He turned his attention to the arrow. "Ha! A measly arrow, how adorable." He said as he grabbed it. "In all honesty, your best archer-" He pulled it out to reveal a Bomb Arrow that's about to explode on him. "-…Missed… uh oh."

**BOOM!**

"AAAARGH!" Wizzro was thrown to a wall, then Groose's Loftwing landed and Zelda hopped off of the Loftwing with her Crossbow out.

"Need a hand?" Zelda smiled.

Ganondorf let out a chuckle. "As I live and breathe… you're actually alive."

"The kid's alive?!" Midna asked in surprise. "…Dammit, I owe Ganon twenty rupees…"

Wizzro groaned as he shook it off and saw Zelda. "YOU?! You're supposed to be dead!"

"Guess what? Life is all full of disappointments." Zelda said. "If I'm dead, I wouldn't have shot that arrow at you."

"You were the one who did that?! Grrr…" He growled and then noticed the dust cloud got closer as the Hyrule Warriors burst through the gates and Epona neighed as Impa got off of her, and joining the Warriros were Saria and Skull Kid, and then Mipha along with a few other Zoras went to heal up the injured.

"Hello Wiz Face." Skull Kid greeted.

"Skull Kid! I'm glad that you're here! Make an example of these imbeciles!"

"Imbeciles? I think the real imbecile here is you. I would never turn my back on my friends, even _if _I was brainwashed."

"You… you're with them? Fine… I'll kill you too, but first… I'll finish what I started by killing the last of the Kokiri right here!" He exclaimed, but Saria snapped her fingers as vines grew out of the sand and grabbed a hold of the dark wizard, and then the vines pounded Wizzro into the ground repeatedly before throwing him into the middle of the town.

"I have been waiting to do that for the last five years." Saria glared.

"Now then…" Revali aimed his bow at him. "How shall we dispose of this loser right here?"

"Mind if I do it?" Skull Kid aimed his hand at Wizzro, and then telepathically threw him up in the air and slammed him into the ground, and he kept doing it. "Hehehehahahahahahaha! This is fuuuun! Revenge!" He then slammed him into the ground one last time. "That should do it."

"Ooooh… uuuurgh…" Wizzro groaned and then a massive lightning bolt hit him. "BZZZZT!"

"Whoa, Lana! That was incredible!" Zelda praised.

"Sadly, that wasn't me." Lana responded.

"It was me." A voice said as Urbosa walked over to the center of town, now feeling much better thanks to Mipha.

"Nnngh… I think I need to retreat…" Wizzro tried to fly off, but was held down by more vines from Saria. "Ack!"

"Oh, is it my turn?" Midna asked, already looking better as she walked up and summoned a small Mirror of Twilight, then had it form into a fist as she snapped her fingers and punched Wizzro in the air and then summoned a cannon and shot him high into the sky. "Heh, oh how I love it." She turned to Ganondorf. "Hey Ganondork, you're up."

"How many times do I have-… oh never mind…" Ganondorf walked up to the spot where Wizzro was about to land and darkness conjured up in his hand as he pulled back his fist, the darkness getting more intense and when Wizzro came flying back down and got in range, Ganondorf smirked. "HAH!" He yelled, unleashing a Warlock Punch on him that sent him toward a wall.

"Oh! That'll hurt in the morning!" Daruk exclaimed.

"Heh, it's about time you used that move we taught you!" Twinrova smirked.

"Hey Zelda, mind if I borrow one of your arrows?" Revali asked.

"You have arrows, you know."

"Oh no, I meant a special kind." Revali smirked.

"Oh, sure." Zelda nodded.

"Urgh…" Wizzro got up, groaning. "I… I am still going to find a way to-" An Ancient Arrow hit him in the chest, completely obliterating him.

"I've had quite enough of your monologuing." Revali said as all the Gerudo cheered.

Ganondorf chuckled and turned to Zelda. "We've a lot to catch up on."

"Yes, we do." Zelda nodded.

"Everyone! Let us meet in the castle. We must discuss our plan to retake Hyrule." Ganondorf said as everyone nodded and then they walked to the castle.

"Uh… do we have to include the beasts too?" Riju asked as one of the Lynels glared at her. "What? I'm just asking!"

* * *

_Meanwhile, at Hyrule Castle__…_

"SHE WHAT!" Link yelled.

"Yes. Volga was defeated by Zelda… and I had to cut him down before he even joined the Hyrule Warriors."

"Nnngh… that damned girl…" Link growled. "What about Wizzro?"

"I have no idea."

"Your highness!" A soldier ran into the room. "We got urgent news!"

"This better be good or otherwise it's your head!"

"…Okay, I think it can wait." The soldier paled.

Another soldier ran in. "Sire! Wizzro has been killed! Zelda's forces were responsible!"

The first soldier tensed up. "Nice timing…"

"SHE DID WHAT?!" Link yelled and stood up from his throne. "Great! Now that damn woman is going to be charging at my doorstep at any minute!"

"What do you suggest we do?"

"Fortify the castle! As of further notice, the town is on lock down! No one goes in or out until the Hyrule Warriors are destroyed once and for all!" Link exclaimed.

"Sir yes sir!" The soldiers saluted and ran off.

Ghirahim turned to Link. "And what are you planning on doing?"

"…I need a moment." Link said as he walked away from the throne, then he walked down the hallway and into the science lab.

"Ah! Your highness, what brings you into the lab?" The scientist asked.

"That potion. Where is it?"

"What potion?"

"That potion you showed me five years ago! WHERE IS IT?!"

"I-it's in that cupboard!"

Link walked over to the cupboard and opened it, seeing the potion inside and taking it out. "There we go."

"Your highness, what are you doing?! You can't drink that, it's highly unstable and no matter what I did, nothing can be done to counteract it! Give me that vial!"

Link turned around and backhanded the scientist, then he quickly downed it before dropping it, the vial shattering while Link started coughing, falling to his knees and punching the ground. "Nngh… aaagh…"

The scientist looked at him in horror. "You fool… you… you drank it all… DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'VE DONE?! YOU'VE CURSED YOURSELF! Now when the Blood Moon rises, you'll-" Link grabbed his throat. "Argh!"

"Shut… the hell up… old man…" Link whispered and dropped him.

"I should've taken my experiments out of the lab and out of this castle! You're a mad man! You're a maniac!"

Link glared at him, unsheathing his sword. "I said… shut up."

The scientist backed away slowly, fearing for his life. "Everyone was right about you! You've changed! You're a monster! I should've bolted when I had the chance! YOU'RE A MAD MAN! As of today, I am siding with the Hyrule Warr-"

In one swift movement, Link swung his arm and then put his sword back, as the scientist's head fell to the ground as blood sprayed all over the walls while the body collapsed… and Link started laughing maniacally before stopping, scowling and clenching his fists.

"Fine. _I__'__ll do it myself."_

* * *

**I'm gonna be honest... I'm not sure what to think of Sirfetch'd. I mean yeah, it's cool and all, but... i'm not really feeling it. I think it's mostly because I was never really attached to Farfetch'd at all and looking at his evolution is making me go "...Why?"**

**Also, while I haven't gotten Link's Awakening (I plan on getting that for my birthday. ;) I do plan on getting Dragon Quest though!), I did play Link to the Past on the SNES Online. It was really fun! ...Except at the ending... ugh, of all the things I could forget from watching TRG, it had to be the Silver Arrows. Talk about a punch to the gut when you were really close on finishing the game with no game overs and had to rewind to use the lantern instead of the Fire Rod (Because Ganon wasn't going down, so I used the lantern to use less magic. How a lantern can use up magic, I'll never understand.), only to look on Google and wondering "How do you beat Ganon?" and then seeing I needed the Silver Arrows to finish him off.**

**Golden Sword? Yeah, I got that, but the Silver Arrows? Nope. For my first playthrough, I had almost all the Heart Containers (Needed eight heart pieces to fully complete it) and I didn't go out of my way to grab the Magic Cape and the Cane of Byrna. Not bad for a first playthrough, no? No game overs, I was set... the end was in sight! Aaaaand... that happened. I had to let go of my last remaining fairies and get my first Game Over right at the end so I could get the Silver Arrows, restock on my four fairies and restock my magic.**

**I was so pissed off that after I finished off Ganon, I was practically screaming at the Triforce to "shut the hell up and get on with the credits already!" **

**Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun, but that sweet sweet victory I was aiming for... was only more of a sour victory and the whole "forcing myself to get a game over" killed the mood. Sigh.**

**Anyway, we're down to like one or two chapters left of this story before it's finished! I'm so excited! **

**Edit: "That's even close to Mido!" How did I not see this? I thought I put in a "not" in there. Anyway, it's fixed! **


	20. The Battle of Hyrule

****************Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.****************

* * *

"Alright, so how are we gonna go about this?" Ganondorf asked, sitting on his throne with his wife as everyone was in the throne room.

"We obviously need to take down Link no matter what." Midna said, leaning on a wall. "As soon as we get rid of the bastard, Hyrule will flourish like it used to."

"Agreed. But going in there isn't easy." Impa said. "Believe me, I tried going in there and attempted to assassinate him myself, but it's heavily well guarded."

"Are the guards really that strong?" Zelda asked.

"While the Hylian Guards aren't that cracked up to be, there are a lot of Sniper Turrets surrounding the town and the castle. The monster turned Castle Town into a fortress." Impa said. "Going inside isn't easy, and even if you did, it would be hard to try to find a way inside without being detected. The Guardians are ordered to shoot on sight and if you're not spotted by the Guardians, the guards will haul you off to the dungeon if you are an outsider. Guards walk on every street in town and let's not forget…" She turned to Zelda. "You have a target painted on your back, and ever since you came back from slumber, I'm sure Link is very well aware that you're alive from his attempted murder."

"Right… so we need to find a way to go in without being seen… so we have to be quiet."

"I'd hate to be the bearer of bad news, but some of us don't have an inside voice." Ruto said, referring to the Gorons.

"Hey! We're not _that _loud!" Darunia complained.

"You'd definitely wake up a few Stalchildren…" Saria said.

"Hmm…" Zelda folded her arms. "We need a plan. Is there a table nearby?"

"I can go get one." Urbosa said as she walked away.

"What do you need a table for?" Groose asked.

"Well, I don't think hatching plans are meant to be sitting on the ground." Zelda chuckled, and then Urbosa returned with a table and set it down.

"Alright… I also got a huge piece of paper too just in case." Urbosa said.

"Thank you." Zelda nodded and took it, as Nabooru gave Zelda a pen as she started drawing on the paper. "I grew up in Castle Town, so I know my way around the place… and I've also been in Hyrule Castle a lot since Link was my best friend and we usually hung out in there."

"They just let you walk in?" Lana asked in surprise.

"Normally, it's not open to the public, but Link pulled some strings so I could be allowed in. Not to mention his parents always liked me, so I was always trusted." Zelda smiled. "I was even let into the throne room on a few occasions." She said and then finished up her drawing. "Alright, done."

"That's a very detailed map." Groose mused.

"Well, obviously. The young girl lived there!" Koume said.

"Exactly! Now pay attention, whippersnapper!" Kotake exclaimed.

"Hmm…" Zelda looked at the map. "What would be the best strategy…" She whispered, folding her arms and closed her eyes, then inspiration hit her. "I got it!"

* * *

_Late into the afternoon__…_

"Man… this is the most boring post in the world…" A Soldier grumbled at the top of the entrance wall.

"Tell me about it… no action for five years… ugh, I wish something interesting would happen… I'm about to die of boredom."

"It's a shame that the king won't let us play board games or card games up here."

"Uuuugh… let something interesting happen… PLEASE!" The second soldier complained and then noticed the Guardian Turrets acting up. "Hmm? Looks like they picked up on something."

"Eh… probably just a begger…"

"No, I don't think it's a begger." The soldier brought out binoculars and looked into them, seeing Zelda walk across the field and toward Castle Town. "That's Zelda!"

"Zelda? She's alive?! How come we're never told anything?"

"I don't know… but we're ordered to fire on sight! Shoot her down!" The soldier ordered as the Turrets started charging up.

"Just as I predicted." Zelda said and snapped her fingers, casting Nayru's Love on herself and had the shield protect her.

"Wait a minute… is that some kind of reflecting shield?" The second soldier wondered.

"If those turrets fire… WAIT! ABORT! ABORT! YOU'RE GONNA KILL US ALL IF YOU FIRE THAT BLOODY LASER!"

"I come in peace! I came to turn myself in!" Zelda called out.

"…Turn yourself… what the…" The soldier turned to his friend. "Is she bluffing?"

"Call off your turrets or this shield is gonna reflect it back at you!"

"I KNEW IT!"

"Cease fire! CEASE FIRE!" The soldier yelled as the turrets stopped charging their lasers. "Phew…"

"Good choice… now open the gates!"

"You heard the bloody woman, open it up!" He yelled as the gate opened and then Zelda walked in.

"Thank you!" Zelda waved, deactivating Nayru's Love.

"U-uh… you're under arrest! Stay right there and we'll escort you to his highness!" The soldier ordered and then turned to his friend. "You go."

"I GO?! Why me?!"

"'Cause that woman scares me! You go get her!"

"Are you crazy?! She's a monster! She's the leader of the Hyrule Warriors! I'm not going near her! She almost blew us up, remember?!"

"Well, I can't go down there! She'll bite my head off!"

"If it's okay with you two, I'll go to the castle myself." Zelda said and then walked off.

"Okay, her back is turned to us. Should we fire?"

"Yes! Fire at that woman!"

Zelda smirked and then reactivated Nayru's Love. "I wouldn't do that!" She said, her back still turned to them.

"WAIT! DON'T!" He yelled, stopping the Turrets from firing as Zelda deactivated Nayru's Love and then she turned a corner. "Aaaand she's out of sight."

"…You don't think things are gonna get weirder, do you?"

"I don't know… something doesn't feel right though."

Zelda weaved around the streets, her sights still set for the castle. She was determined to finish this. She turned a corner and walked straight ahead when she noticed a burnt down home in the corner of her eye and then turned around to look at it. "No… he didn't…" She whispered and walked toward it, then seeing a sign near the doorway.

_Let this be an example of those who oppose me! - His Majesty - Link_

Zelda clenched her fists. She recognized this building anywhere, or what was left of it. It was her own home. "So they were right… my parents were killed when I went on a journey." She silently whispered and then turned her attention to the castle.

"Halt! Don't make another move!" A voice said as Zelda turned her head to see a guard aiming his spear at her.

"I would ask you if you recognize me, but I imagine Link brainwashed you into thinking I am a monster."

"Zelda… I do recognize you. But you are on the wrong side… you're with the rebels. I must fight for his majesty!"

"Do you even realize who you're fighting for?"

"Mmph… if I don't obey his orders, he'll have my head! I'm sorry, Zelda… but… orders are orders!" He exclaimed. "Now… if you come quietly, this will be over soon!"

Zelda said nothing and then walked over to him. "Ack! Don't come any closer! I've heard how dangerous you've become!" He pleaded, as Zelda fearlessly walked closer to him. "I'm warning you, don't take another step!" His whole body was shaking, as he couldn't bring himself to hurt her. "AH! DON'T HURT ME!" He exclaimed, closing his eyes… and then Zelda gently put her hand on his shoulder. "…Huh?"

"There's a coming storm… you should evacuate."

"I… I can't. His majesty ordered that no one goes in or out. I'm not sure how you got in, but I don't think you'll get out of here…"

"Then take shelter. The storm is fast approaching." Zelda said and walked off. "After the storm passes… there will be a rainbow." She said.

"A r-rainbow? What do you mean by that?" He asked, but Zelda was out of ear shot. "…What storm is she talking about?"

Zelda kept walking as she got to the castle walls where a few guards looked down at her. "Is that…? It couldn't be…"

"Open up! I'm turning myself in."

"…Do rebels willingly turn themselves in?" A guard wondered.

"I dunno! This is completely new territory for me."

"Just let me in!" Zelda folded her arms. "I don't like to be kept waiting."

"Uh… alright!" The guard nodded and opened the gate.

"King Rhoam didn't like closing the gates…" Zelda whispered and then walked through the gates. "I don't need an escort, I know where His Majesty is probably at." She said and then kept walking, standing before the front doors and then turned her head behind her one last time to look at Castle Town. All those people she saw living in the streets, the homes looking horrible, people looking famished… Link was ruining everything he touched, and she didn't like that at all.

She clenched her fists and walked into the castle, walking straight to the throne room as some guards saw her and froze up in fear as she kept walking until she got to the doors and walked in, walking directly into the throne room, but it was empty. Zelda stood in the middle of the room and looked around. "Where are you…"

"You're a bold one." A voice said as Zelda turned her head to see Ghirahim walking over to her. "You walked right into town with no weapons. I don't even the Master Sword on you. You decided to turn yourself in without a fight. I'm impressed!" He chuckled. "But, you are naive. If you thought you can turn yourself in and all will be well, you got another thing coming. I will kill you before master could dirty his hands." He summoned his rapier.

"Oh, Ghirahim… am I the one that's truly naive? Or are you the one that's naive?"

Ghirahim raised an eyebrow. "What the devil are you talking about?"

Zelda chuckled. "Oh, you'll see."

"If you're trying to stall, it won't work." He raised his sword up in the air and he watched Zelda spread her arms out and closed her eyes as he swiftly swung his sword down, but he stopped, the blade inches away from her forehead.

Zelda opened her eyes, not even flinching. "What's wrong? Aren't you going to kill me?"

"…This is too easy… why should I kill you here? Something's not right… you're defenseless… the only offensive magic you have is that flame! No… I ought to kill you, but something's not right. What have you done, woman!"

"I haven't done a thing. Make your move. I am, after all, naive."

Ghirahim scowled. "The way you said that word makes me uncomfortable…" He put his sword away. "What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding a thing. Go ahead… hit me."

Ghirahim let out a laugh. "No! I will not- YOU CAN'T TRICK ME! I refuse!"

"You don't want to disappoint Link, do you? Do it. Hurt me. You know you want to. Make him proud."

"What game are you playing?!"

"I'm not playing any game."

"Listen to me very carefully… I don't know what game you're playing, but I will not fall for it!"

Zelda chuckled, putting her arms down and then folded them. "Fine, if you're not gonna kill me, then show me where your boss is."

Footsteps were heard behind Zelda. "Well well well… you made my job a whole lot easier."

Zelda turned around, seeing Link. "Oh… hello Link." She said, looking pretty annoyed while he kept walking.

"You decided to come alone weaponless and thinking you can defeat me? After all these years, you're still naive as ever." Link smirked. "How's the wound that I gave you?"

"I'll tell you how I feel." Zelda said as Link stood at arm's length.

"Then tell me. How do you feel?" Link still smirked… and then Zelda punched him with a right hook, straight on the cheek.

"That was for that stab wound." Zelda said, and then punched him again with a link. "That was for Aryll."

Link chuckled, rubbing his chin as Zelda went to punch him again, but Link grabbed her arm. "You will not hit me a third time." He said, looking at Zelda with a sadistic look on his eyes. "You know… assaulting your king is a death sentence."

Zelda glared at him hatefully. "Then what are you waiting for? Kill me right here."

"No… killing you in the throne room would be too… boring." He chuckled. "I have plans for you."

"Oh, by the way… you are no king of mine. Rhoam was my king. You're just a man child of a tyrant pretending to be a king."

Link frowned and then slapped her on the cheek. "You will _not _talk to your king like that!" He snarled as Zelda glared at him. "I have a special execution in mind for you… Ghirahim!" He ordered as Ghirahim karate chopped the back of her neck to knock her out.

* * *

_"Link still thinks I'm the naive woman that he always took me for." Zelda explained to the Warriors. "So, I'll go in alone."_

_"WHAT?! Are you mad?!" Groose exclaimed._

_"Wait, let her speak." Ganondorf told him. "Continue."_

_"I know the guards… and they're not the sharpest tools in the shed, so they're probably going to be afraid if opposition comes to them. If we go as a whole team, it'll catch their attention and we'll be wiped out by the Sniper Turrets in an instant. If I go alone and the rest of you stay hidden, then we can catch them by surprise."_

_"How do you propose we do that?" Impa asked._

_"I'll turn myself in… knowing the guards, they probably will be afraid to escort me to the castle, so I'll escort myself. Link probably has some execution planned for me, and I have a feeling he'd make it public , so that's when the rest of you will strike. The element of surprise, if you will."_

_"That sounds like a good idea." Midna said. "A little insane if you ask me, but it could work."_

_"Oh… and I'll go weaponless. If I have my weapons, it'll draw suspicion… so I'll go with nothing but my magic." She turned to Lana. "I leave my weapons to you. I'd like them back when I'm rescued."_

_"You can count on me!" Lana saluted._

_"Alright, so… we'll come up with something while you get ready." Ganondorf said. "Tonight, we'll take Hyrule back!"_

_"YEAH!" Everyone yelled… everyone but Groose that is._

* * *

Link was out on the patio of the castle, sitting on the Queen's throne that he had moved to, as it was overlooking the main courtyard. He had invited everyone in Castle Town to attend… well, more like forced them to attend or he'd raise the taxes even further or even worse, but anyway, the residents wandered to the courtyard. None of them wanted to look at him, for they were fixated on looking at what was in the middle of the courtyard. All Link could do was smirk wickedly.

"Your highness, it's your cue." A guard told him.

"Thank you." Link replied as he stood up and walked to the railing. "Attention, people of Hyrule! You are about to witness an execution here today. This young woman, leader of the so-called Hyrule Warriors, has attempted to take the life of your noble king. This silly rebellion that led on for a few years has finally come to an end. Her execution will be burning at the stake!"

"No way…" One of the starving young children could whisper, looking on at the beautiful woman tied to the stake.

"It can't be. There's no way she could do such a thing."

"Welp, she tried and failed. Sucks to be her." A man quietly said.

"There's no way that SHE could have done this, right?"

"The woman you are seeing before you, is none other than Zelda!"

Zelda opened her eyes, regaining consciousness and looked around, seeing where she was, letting out a small smirk. _Show time. _She thought, making her smirk disappear and looked up to Link. "Link! LINK! Please stop this! I'm begging you! The power has gone to your head! There's still time for you to snap out of it! Listen to me, PLEASE!" She knew very well that Link wouldn't listen to her, but she had to make it sound convincing that she's begging him to turn his life around.

Link stared at her, smirking. The thought of this naive girl would dare try to make him change? Just as he predicted. She's _still _naive. "I don't know what you're talking about." He said.

_Saw that coming. _Zelda thought as her eyes widened, fake tears falling from her eyes. "I thought we were best friends! Remember long ago when you said you'd never hurt me? Please, try to remember!"

Link folded his arms, closing his eyes in irritation. This girl was annoying him to no end. Remember to never hurt Zelda? He doesn't seem to recall that. He turned his head to the executioner. "Executioner, raise the torch."

"As you wish, your highness." The executioner said and grabbed a torch.

_It was worth a shot__… _Zelda thought again. "Link! PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS!" She pleaded, fake tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Silence, peasant! You would do well to be quiet!" Link shouted, then smirked, knowing full well that Zelda hated being called a peasant.

_Peasant. _Zelda started trembling with rage. "Peasant…" She whispered but something inside her told her to keep her cool Oh… she was going to _enjoy _this when she gets freed.

"You think you can talk through to me, but you never will. The Link you once knew is_gone_, and it's high time you knew your place. Executioner, light her up."

The executioner nodded and then lowered the torch, where it started to burn the hay around the Hylian. Zelda stared at the fire as it was creeping up to her feet as she activated Din's Fire to slowly burn the rope tied to her hands. _Come on__… __where are you…_

Suddenly, a loud cawing was heard. "What was that?" A guard wondered.

"Look! Up there!" A boy called out as they saw a black Loftwing soaring down toward them and then two bodies jumped off of the Loftwing, one of them firing a lightning bolt directly at Link.

"ARGH!" Link cried, falling over and then the two landed on the ground, revealing to be Lana and Groose, the latter holding a bag in his hands.

"Zelda!" Groose exclaimed, tossing the bag over to Zelda right as Din's Fire destroyed the rope as she quickly caught it and then jumped off, equipping herself with her items and then unsheathing the Master Sword.

"Told you this would work!" Zelda smirked.

* * *

_"Zelda, I'm not so sure this is a good idea." Groose said. "I'm strongly against this crazy plan of yours!"_

_"Groose, everything will be fine."_

_"I have to agree with Groose." Fi popped out of the sword. "If you go through with this, there is a 45% chance that this will work. Everyone else is desperate to win this war, but this is a more personal mission for you. Perhaps we should rethink this."_

_"I, for one, think it's a good idea." A voice said as Lana approached the trio. "It's crazy, yes… but it might just be crazy enough to work."_

_"Okay, so you go weaponless. Where are your weapons going to be?" Groose asked._

_"Ah… that's where you come in." Zelda grinned. "Before I'm executed, both you and Lana swoop in to intervene and hand me my weapons. Link won't know what'll hit him!"_

* * *

Link got up, groaning. "Sire! Are you okay?" A soldier asked, and then the wicked king grabbed his collar. "Yipe!"

"Do. I. LOOK. Okay?! I got blasted by a lightning bolt!"

"Well, sire… you're still okay. Probably just a little tingly, but-"

"SILENCE!" Link shoved him down.

"Ooof!"

Link glared at the trio. "You honestly think these two buffoons are enough to win? You are still very naive! You can't win alone!"

"Oh, I know that." Zelda said.

**BOOM!**

Zelda nonchalantly pointed her thumb behind her toward the walls. "But they can."

Link looked up to see the town gate had fallen and the Lynels were charging with the Zoras on top of them. "No… fire at the Lynels! NOW!"

"But sire… the civilians!"

"JUST DO IT!"

All the Sniper Guardians aimed at the town and began charging up, when suddenly one of them turned to one of its brethren and fired, destroying it instantly. "WHAT?!" Link yelled.

* * *

_"Purah, do you think you can infilitrate into one of the Sniper Turrets undetected?" Zelda asked._

_"Oh, so you want me to hack? I'll see what I can do. Just drop me off at the gates and I'll work my magic!"_

* * *

_A few minutes earlier__…_

_"Hello, boys!" Purah exclaimed after Groose and Lana dropped her off._

_"Oh, it's just a little girl. We can take her!" One of the soldiers exclaimed… and then Purah kicked him in the knee. "ARGH!" He cried, and then Purah did a flip kick to knock him over._

_"Don't call me a little girl!" Purah snarled and glared at the other soldier, who dropped his spear and held his arms up._

_"I surrender!"_

_"Good." Purah walked over to the Sniper Turret, humming to herself as she opened up a hatchet. "Oh, don't mind me, just reworking the Guardian's main data frame~!"_

* * *

_Back in the present__…_

More explosions were heard as Link looked up in the air to see Gorons launching from the walls via cannons that Midna conjured up. "YEEEEHAAAAAW!" Daruk yelled.

"This can't be happening…" Link whispered and then started fuming. "So, you want war, Zelda?! I'll give you a war! MEN! GET ALL THE SOLDIERS AND DARK NUTS ON THE DOUBLE! GET THE GUARDIANS TOO!"

"But sire… with a war within the walls… no one will survive! You're damning your subjects to death!" A soldier protested.

"DID I STUTTER?! JUST DO IT!"

"…No! I refuse!" The soldier exclaimed. "I will not let you do such a thing and endanger the civilians!"

"I DON'T GIVE TWO DAMNS ABOUT THE CIVILIANS! IF YOU'RE SIDING WITH THE WARRIORS, YOU ARE A TRAITOR!" Link yelled, unsheathing his sword.

The soldier's eyes widened. "You… you truly have gone mad… I've been siding with the wrong person all this time…" He whispered as Link raised his sword up, but suddenly he was frozen with golden chains.

"Nnngh! What gives?!"

"Hurry! Get out of there!" Zelda yelled, having used Stasis on Link as the soldier ran over to them and then looked at the stunned audience.

"Y-you heard the king! He doesn't care about all of you! Quick, we must get to the shelters now!" He ordered. "Come, follow me!" He exclaimed and took off as the civilians, rich and poor, took off running.

"That takes care of the civilians…" Zelda said as the Gorons landed right as Ghirahim appeared next to Link.

"Master, I gave the order! The soldiers and Dark Nuts are on their way, the Guardians are also coming."

"Good." Link said and glared at Zelda who was smirking at him.

"So, Link… who's naive now?" Zelda asked with a smirk.

"All troops… ATTACK THE TRAITORS!" Link yelled as soldiers, Dark Nuts and Guardians came out in all directions to intercept the Hyrule Warriors.

Zelda turned to Groose and Lana. "Go help the Warriors. Link is mine."

"Got it!" Lana nodded.

"Stay safe!" Groose told her as they ran off while Zelda turned around to see Link standing at the throne before walking back in without saying a word.

"Coward! You ready for this Fi?"

_"__I'm ready, master!" _

"Let's rock." Zelda ran into the castle, but as soon as she ran in, an arrow whizzed past her, hitting a bust that shattered.

"Next shot, I won't miss." Link said, holding a bow and arrow.

Zelda pulled out her crossbow. "I'd hate to do this to you… but this has gone on long enough." She said.

"I couldn't agree more." Link agreed, as Zelda equipped a Bomb Arrow and aimed at him, taking a deep breath as they both released the arrow, as the arrows both collided and the Bomb Arrow exploded, knocking the two back from the shockwave, but they both got up and Zelda quickly fired a Shock Arrow through the smoke. "Gyaaaah!" Link cried, getting knocked over from the electricity.

"Gotcha." Zelda smirked and then ran through the smoke and slashed at him, but Link wasn't there as she turned her head to see a hallway and then she ran through, and before she could turn the corner, she quickly jumped back right as Link swung down from the corner of the wall.

"Your reflexes have gotten better." He said, as Zelda was on the other corner.

"Yeah… thanks for noticing." Zelda rolled her eyes and then pulled out her Sheikah Slate and summoned a Remote Bomb, then she rolled it across the hall, where Link saw this and his eyes widened before Zelda pressed a button, causing Link to go flying as Zelda jumped through the corner as Link got back up, noticing Zelda charging at him with the Master Sword and slashed him, but he blocked with his shield and and then countered, only for Zelda to block and parried the attack, then they both kept swinging at each other, clashing their blades and both of them glaring at each other.

"You've improved… but you're not going to win this silly war!"

"My my, you've gotten cocky after all these years!" Zelda smirked, parrying the attack and then kicking him in the gut, making him back up as Zelda swung her sword repeatedly, as Link tried to block the attacks, but Zelda kept swinging as hard as she could until Zelda kicked him toward some glass doors that knocked him out toward a balcony as Zelda walked through the broken glass and grabbed him by the collar and made him turn around to look at the town. "Look at this! LOOK at this mess that you've created!" Zelda yelled.

Link was forced to look, watching Guardians blow up houses while trying to hit some nimble Kakarikans and Zoras, a Dark Nut striking down a Lynel, but a few more and some Gorons overwhelmed it to knock it over, a Hyrulian kicking down a soldier before getting blasted away by a Flying Guardian, only to get destroyed by a Sniper Turret thanks to Purah.

"Can't you see what you've done?! This wouldn't have happened if you weren't such an ass!" Zelda exclaimed. "You created this mess. Your people looked up to you and this is how you repay them?! THIS is what King Rhoam's legacy turned out?!" She yelled.

"Nngh… it's too late… all of it's too late…" Link turned to her. "You think it's easy running a kingdom solo? It's been a stressful five years… but we can turn this around. Call off your army… we can rule Hyrule together!"

Zelda sighed. "Oh Link… if only I could truly trust you. If I decided to side with you, you'd find a way to kill me when my guard is down… I'm sorry, but I can't trust you!" She threw him back inside the castle.

"Nnngh… truly, you're not as naive as you once were. I have to ask… why didn't you want to throw me off the balcony?"

"Wouldn't have been as satisfying."

Link chuckled. "Zelda… you're too kind hearted for your own good." He said. "That's what makes you weak."

"Tch, at least I didn't sit on my butt barking orders to have my head served to you on a silver platter. At least I was doing something, I've had many hardships on my journey. What's your excuse, your butt got sore from sitting on the throne for too long?"

"I'll have you know that I did more than sit on that throne!"

"Like killing innocent girls? _Like your sister?__" _Zelda snarled at that last bit. "Your sister looked up to you… but ever since that day, you've changed! I was too blind to notice because you were my best friend… but that best friend is long gone. Now I'm looking at a monster…"

"Sentimental… pathetic." Link smirked. "I stopped caring abut my sister ever since I killed her. Just like I did with my parents. Nobody has stood in my way for five years… and now look what happened. You come back from the dead."

"Maybe next time, you should've properly killed me!" Zelda exclaimed, quickly slashing at Link again where he quickly parried the attack as they both kept slashing at each other, forcing Link to backup as they kept at it until they got to the throne room, clashing their blades repeatedly until Zelda did a sweep kick to knock Link down and then her fist burst into flame and punched him straight into the ground, then called upon her Phantom as it started slashing him repeatedly until it slashed him up in the air and then it bent down as Zelda got a running start, jumped on the Phantom and then catapulted in the air, slashing Link to the ground with the latter landing on his back and Zelda landing near him.

"Nnngh…" Link groaned, and then Zelda kicked him in the ribs. "Argh!"

"Get up! I'm not through with you yet." Zelda glared at him as Link got up, holding on to his shoulder.

"You've… you've definitely gotten stronger…" Link coughed a bit, coughing out a little blood. "I'm not done though…"

"Neither am I." Zelda said, getting in her stance as Link charged at her and slashed at her, which she blocked the attacks and parried and then countered.

"Nnngh!" Link winced and then he kept at it, blocking her attacks until he parried, leaving her wide open and then kicking her in the knee.

"Agh!" Zelda cried as Link smirked and then slashed her down. "Argh!"

"Heh, you can't overpower a king." Link smirked, as he walked over to Zelda and kicked her in the chest, knocking her down and placing his foot on her gut. "Heh, look at you… you look pathetic." He smirked, kicking the Master Sword off of her hand. "Looks like I win." He said and chuckled darkly. "I guess you weren't all that cracked up to be!"

Suddenly, heavy footsteps were heard from the hallways as he looked up to see Ganondorf coming in on his horse, and then jumped off. "Zelda!"

"Urgh… hey Ganon…" Zelda groaned.

"Seriously, horseback inside the castle? Have you lost your mind?" Link asked.

"Wanted to get here as quick as I could from the battlefield, I got worried." Ganondorf said, unsheathing his sword and running directly at Link. "Haaaah!" He exclaimed, slashing at Link to get him off of Zelda. "You alright?"

"A little bruised, but I'll be alright…" Zelda coughed as Ganondorf helped her up. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Ganondorf nodded as Zelda picked up the Master Sword and got in her battle stance.

"Hmm… I like these odds." Link mused. "Gives me more of a challenge… but I'll see to it that I'll remain victorious!" He exclaimed… and suddenly, their wrists began to glow.

"What in the world…" Zelda wondered.

"The three pieces of the Triforce are resonating…" Ganondorf whispered in awe.

"All three pieces of the Triforce have reunited." Link said before he started laughing maniacally. "Oh, this is just perfect! Once I'm done killing the both of you, I'll take the Triforce of Wisdom _AND _Courage from the both of you, then I will make sure Hyrule really flourishes under MY rule!"

"The Triforce had split because of your wicked heart! It wouldn't listen to a tyrant such as you!" Ganondorf declared.

"Then I'll just have to _make it _listen to me." Link smirked.

"You're mad…" Zelda whispered sadly.

"Mad?" Link laughed. "I suppose I am… now… Zelda, Ganondorf! Hand me the Triforce of Wisdom and Courage!"

"As if we'd let you take it from us!" Zelda exclaimed.

"That wasn't a request! GIVE IT TO ME!" Link yelled, running straight at the duo and slashing at Zelda, only she parried the attack while Ganondorf Warlock Punched him in the gut right after, making him cough out blood and had him go flying toward the throne, destroying it as soon as he crashed through it.

"Give _what _to you?" Ganondorf folded his arms as Link crawled out of the rubble, groaning.

"Fine… I guess I have no other choice…" Link let out a chuckle. "You've been thorns in my side for far too long… heheh… but now it's time for this to end…"

"Link… just give up. You've lost… just stop!" Zelda yelled. "It's two of us against you!"

"Ah ah ah! It's perfectly even!" A voice exclaimed.

_"__Look out!" _Fi yelled from the sword as she got out and blocked Ghirahim's attack from behind.

"Nnngh! Must you interfere, Fi?!" Ghirahim snarled.

"You two handle Link. I'll deal with him!" Fi yelled and then kicked Ghirahim away.

"Now like I said before…" Zelda said. "Please… just put an end to this, Link. If you stop now, we won't harm you any further. Just turn yourself in and we can find a way to clean up your mess."

"Stop now…? _Stop NOW?! _I have worked too hard to just stop what I am doing! If you think I'll go quietly… you're wrong! I have a mess to clean up? In my eyes, your mess is the one that needs cleaning up, NOT MINE! I have made excellent progress and the only thing standing in my way from turning Hyrule into a glorious paradise is the Hyrule Warriors!" Link yelled. "You heretics will be SILENCED!"

A tear escaped Zelda's eye. "Nothing I say can truly get through to you… I was hoping I wouldn't do this, but you leave me no choice, Link…" Zelda clenched her fists. "I must put an end to you… by taking your life…" She glared hard at Link. "I'm sorry, old friend… but you leave me with no other choice!"

Ganondorf noticed something behind the throne through an open window. "What in the… look at that!"

"Huh?" Zelda looked up and saw the moon shining behind the window, but it looked different. "It's the Blood Moon…"

"Just in time." Link said before something pulsated within him. "Mmmph… aaaagh…!" He groaned and then fell on two knees, groaning. "Nnngh…. Agh…. AAAAAAAAAAAGH!" He screamed as the Blood Moon shined down on him as he started changing drastically and growing in size before turning into a Wolf… but having the body of Castlevania's Werewolf while having the colors of Wolf Link from Twilight Princess.

"Oh my goddess…" Zelda whispered.

"What in blazes?!" Ganondorf exclaimed as Link stood up and let out a mighty howl that was loud enough to shatter glass all through the castle and then he charged directly at Zelda in the blink of an eye, and before Zelda could prepare herself, Link swiped at her, sending her flying through the castle and toward Castle Town. "ZELDA!" Ganondorf yelled as Link backhanded him toward a wall. "Ooof!"

"I'll deal with you later!" Link snarled, his voice distorted as he leapt across the halls and into the courtyard, letting out a mighty howl that caught everyone's attention, both sides, including the Guardians.

"Your Majesty?" A Dark Nut asked in surprise.

"There's…. That can't be his Majesty, could it?" A soldier wondered.

"What… what is that thing?" Impa asked after impaling a Guardian.

Zelda got up, coughing. "Ugh…" She wiped some blood from her mouth and saw Link, holding on to her shoulder. "Nngh… now everyone knows who you are… everyone saw you as a savior of Hyrule, but… in reality, you're just a Wolfos in sheep's clothing." She said.

"I don't give a damn about anyone right now… everyone here is worthless… except for you! I can rebuild my kingdom and make anyone stupid enough to work for me!"

"W-We're stupid?!" A soldier exclaimed.

"…Knew I was fighting for the wrong side…" A Dark Nut groaned, while Purah locked and loaded at Link from the Sniper Turret.

"Open wide!" Purah exclaimed, firing the laser as Link saw the laser and deflected it, sending it to a group of soldiers and Dark Nuts, easily killing them. "…No way!"

"Like a puny laser would do anything… but no matter, I'm only interested in _her!__" _Link lunged at Zelda, who quickly blocked with the Hylian Shield and blocked the attack, but the force was strong enough to send her down to one knee and then Link punched her, sending her flying through several houses and smacking into a destroyed Guardian.

"Nnngh… AGH!" Zelda groaned, coughing out blood as some shrapnel from the Guardian pierced her right side, as blood came out of her mouth and trickled down her forehead as Link approached the Hylian as she pulled the shrapnel off of her and weakly jumped to the side to avoid being killed as she quickly turned into Sheik as she quickly threw some needles at him, but he blocked with his furry arm as Sheik quickly ran over and did a Bouncing Fish attack, but Link caught her by the leg and threw her to the ground before tossing her away, making her slam into a few Gorons before a vine wall prevented her from going further.

"Phew…" Saria sighed. "You okay, Zelda?"

"…I've been better…" Sheik groaned as she stood up and tried to walk, but fell on two knees and took the cowl off of her mouth, coughing out blood.

"Zelda, you're really hurt… maybe we should-"

"No… and let him reign longer?" Sheik groaned. "Hyrule won't last much longer under a beast like him…" She weakly got up, pulling out her dagger as Link towered over her as Saria got in the way and spread her arms out, only to get backhanded to Skull Kid who was preoccupied with fighting with a soldier, knocking the three of them down. "Saria!" Sheik exclaimed and then fell on two knees again, suddenly turning back into Zelda. "What… did you… cancel my… magic?"

"I suppose I did." Link said and raised his claws up in the air. "No one to save you now._Goodbye, Zelda!__" _He swung his arm down to finish her off.

**CLANG! **

However, someone got in the way… that person being Impa, blocking the claws with her sword.

"Nnngh… not if… I have… anything to say about it!" Impa grunted.

"Impa!"

"Zelda… I don't know if you have any tricks left up your sleeve, but you have to dig deep and find it inside of you. You're the only one who can stop this mad man… I'll hold him off as long as I can! You pray to the goddess as hard as you can! She'll give you something, I guarantee it!" Impa exclaimed,

"What about you?"

"…Unfortunately, this is my final battle." Impa said. "Chances are, I won't survive this… but I know I will hold him off as hard as I can!"

"No… IMPA!" Zelda cried in horror. "You can't die!"

Impa turned her head to her. "It's been an honor serving with you, Zelda." She smiled and then parried Link's attacks, slashing at him repeatedly. "HAAAAAH!" She yelled, striking him with furious attacks but Link eventually caught the blade and with one squeeze, shattered Impa's heavy blade.

"NO!" Zelda yelled, but Impa wasn't deterred as she quickly did a flurry of kicks and punches, doing a few left and right hooks and followed it up with an uppercut and then did a flip kick… but before she could land after the kick, Link grabbed her leg and slammed her into the ground and swiped at her, making her cry out in agony as Link picked her up.

"Any last words… you pathetic Kakarikan?"

Impa let out a chuckle, coughing out blood and smirked at him. "I'll see you in hell." She said as Link slammed her into the ground and then with the ferocity of an actual wolf, he tore into her back as blood was splattered everywhere, complete by lightning flashing in the sky as it started raining.

"No… no… IMPA!" Zelda screamed as everyone else could look on in horror, while Purah nearly fell off the Sniper Turret while Paya fell on her knees, tears running down her cheeks.

"M-Mother…" Paya whispered, before crying loudly.

"Sis… n-no…" Purah could only say, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"How many people have to die under your command, Zelda?!" Link yelled. "HOW MANY?!"

"No… how can I win… against Link…?!" Zelda started quietly sobbing. She was about to die… Impa had just been killed, everyone is getting exhausted from the fights… Link is a walking two ton behemoth… was this truly the end of the Hyrule Warriors?

_"__This… is the power of the Fierce Deity. I am granting you this power so that you may claim victory over Link. You must not let him win."_

Hylia's words echoed inside Zelda's mind, as her eyes widened. "Fierce Diety…" She whispered, remembering Hylia giving her something while she was in the Chamber of Restoration. Quickly, Zelda activated Din's Fire and punched the ground, creating a fire wall to prevent Link advancing toward her.

"Nnngh! You think fire will deter me?!" Link growled as Zelda clasped her hands tightly.

"O Goddesses of Hyrule, hear my plea…" She prayed. "Grant me the power of the Fierce Deity so I may win this battle for the sake of Hyrule!" She yelled, as Link lunged through the fire and swiped at Zelda, but an explosion of light erupted from Zelda, the shockwave knocking Link back as Zelda let out a fierce war cry before transforming into Fierce Deity Zelda.

Her hair turned golden yellow with some silver highlights as it went down to her shoulder blades. Tattoos were on her cheeks as her eyes were suddenly pupil-less. Her clothing changed dramatically. From up to her torso was covered in chainmail with the Triforce Crest on the chest plate while below her torso was a silver skirt with some black trim. Her shoes became knee high purple boots, and the Master Sword became none other than the Fierce Deity Sword.

Zelda glared at Link, holding the Fierce Deity Sword tightly. "Link! Today is the day where I will defeat you!"

"Give me your best shot!" Link challenged as the two lunged at each other, clashing with their swords and claws as Zelda quickly slashed at Link repeatedly as Link did the same in kind, only for Zelda to knee him in the gut to make him keel over and then she slashed at him to knock him toward a building as she raised her sword up in the air and used a Skyward Strike to strike him down, but Link rolled out of the way and lunged directly at Zelda, but she quickly did a spin slash to knock him back as she ran over and slashed at him repeatedly, but Link swiped at her gut while she was wide open to knock her back. However this didn't deter Zelda as she went for a Helm Splitter that knocked Link to the ground, then she grabbed his foot and threw him to the other side, doing a series of Skyward Strikes to send him flying.

Link got back up and howled, running straight at Zelda and swiped at her, but she parried his attack and slashed at his chest repeatedly, and then punched him in the gut, which she activated Din's Fire and fire punched him to send him flying out of Castle Town and into Hyrule Fields. The massive wolf got up and glared at the Fierce Deity standing before him as he howled and charged at her, jumping into the air and biting down on her shoulder as she let out a pained cry and was knocked down as Link attempted to go for her jugular, but Zelda put her hands on his mouth to try to prevent him from ripping her throat out as Zelda kicked him off of her and Zelda got up.

"So… this is the power of the Fierce Deity!" Link exclaimed. "I'm impressed… but this won't be enough to finish me off!"

"I wouldn't bet on it!" Zelda yelled as the two lunged at each other, slashing at each other as lightning flashed in the sky, with them clashing again, but Zelda kicked him in the knees to get him to fall over as she then slashed him to knock him down. Link got up and charged at her, jumping high into the air after she used a Skyward Strike and kicked her in the head to knock her over, then he swiped her in the back as she cried out in agony and left some nasty gashes on her back, then he grabbed her by the head and slammed her in the mud to try and suffocate her, but Zelda punched the ground with Din's Fire to create a fiery explosion that knocked Link back as Zelda got up and wiped the mud from her face.

The duo lunged again, giving it all they got with their attacks as both of them were getting cuts and gashes all over their bodies, but they didn't care as they kept fighting. Zelda swung her sword to cut his chest while Link did the same, damaging the chain mail armor that the Fierce Deity's powers gave her. Link kicked her in the gut, where Zelda Fire Punched his cheek to knock them both down… and then they got back up, but Link was the first to fall on his knees. "Urgh…"

"I'm finishing this." Zelda said, aiming her hand at Link and the Triforce surrounded Link in a prison as Zelda lunged at him, slashing at him with Triforce Slash and then after a series of slashes, she let out final swing that sent him flying toward a tree that knocked him down and topped the tree over… but Link got back up and howled. "What?!"

Link limped over to her. "Heh… that was your final blow?" He smirked and then got ready to attack again, but suddenly he started glowing. "Wh-what?!" He asked as Zelda looked up in the sky to see a break in the clouds and saw that the Blood Moon had turned back into its original color.

"I guess the Blood Moon was only temporary…" Zelda said and looked at a now shirtless Link.

Link coughed out blood, wiping his mouth. "Well… what are you standing there for… I'm no longer in my wolf state… let's make it even!"

Zelda took a deep breath and undid the power of the Fierce Deity. "If you want a fair fight… then so be it." She said as the two of them ran toward each other, both of them swinging their swords and clashing as they kept attacking with their swords until Zelda parried Link's sword, and with a fierce cry, she impaled him through the gut to finish him off as another crack of lightning pierced through the rainy darkness.

Link coughed out major blood. "You… you really have… gotten stronger…" He said as she removed the sword from his gut as he fell, but Zelda caught him in her arms. "Zelda… I-I…"

"Shut up… you big idiot…" Zelda said, tears running down her cheeks.

Link breathed heavily. "I… I really did screw up, didn't I?"

"Why did you go about the way that you did?"

"The power got to my head... way before I got the Triforce of Power... I wasn't thinking straight... my father was right... I am unfit to rule Hyrule... I blamed you because you were there trying to cheer me up... I thought I would turn things around for the better... but I was mistaken..."

"You're just realizing this now?"

"Zelda... i'm... i'm sorry for everything that i've done... Hyrule would be better off without me... No one truly deserves a monster like me..."

"Don't... don't say things like that!" Zelda sobbed, as Link gently put a hand on her cheek.

"You truly are my best friend... I was so blinded by my power that I didn't realize I was hurting everyone and everything around me... even you..." He took a very slow breath. "Thank you... for making me see the errors of... my ways..."

"Link..." Zelda whispered, tears falling from her cheeks and landing on Link's face as he gave her a pained, yet gentle smile before his hand fell, succumbing to his wounds. "Link... No..." Zelda couldn't say anything else as she sobbed loudly, being watched by everyone who saw the whole fight.

Groose tried to walk over, but Lana stopped him by putting her arm in front of him. "Let her grieve. Give her some space."

Ghirahim watched this from on top of a wall, holding on to his arm as blood went down his lower lip. "She actually did it... of all the nerve..."

"She's extraordinary." Fi said, who also looked injured with some bruising.

"Tch..." Ghirahim looked away. "I'm absolutely sick with anger that you won this..." He said and turned his back to her.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting away from this sob fest. I'm heading out. This is the last time you'll see me, Fi. I no longer wish to fight." He grumbled and then disappeared.

"Farewell, Ghirahim."

Zelda still sobbed as a bright light shines in front of her, as the Triforce was glowing in front of her. "What...?"

_"You have done well, Zelda. We are proud of you." _Hylia's voice echoed from the Triforce. _"You have brought peace to Hyrule. Because of your efforts, we have decided to grant you one wish. What will it be?"_

"I... I want Hyrule to go back to the way it was... before Link destroyed everything in his path. Restore order..." Zelda said through her tears.

_"As you wish..." _

The Triforce glowed brightly before disappearing... and then, Zelda collapsed.

* * *

**One more chapter after this. It's almost complete!**

**I have to say though, as a newcomer to Dragon Quest, I had no idea it would be this engaging. Holy crap, Dragon Quest is awesome! I can see why Japan loves this series so much.**

**Although... I do hope AlphaDream can pull through from this bankruptcy business. Yikes...**


	21. Peace

****************Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.****************

* * *

"Give that back!" A little girl yelled.

"Oh, what? This thing?" A bully held his hand up in the air, holding a doll. "Pfft! This girly thing doesn't belong to you. It's mine!"

"Yeah right! Give it back now!"

"Make me!" The bully smirked, and then the girl kicked him in the shin. "OW!" He yelled and then shoved her into the mud. "Ha! Look at you, you're all dirty!"

The girl scowled and then got back up, trying to get her doll back but the bully kicked her down. "Agh!"

"You don't deserve this doll. It's ugly!"

"Hey! Give that back to her right now!" A voice yelled as the bully turned to the source of the voice.

"And just who do you think you are? We're just having some fun!"

"Hmph! Doesn't look like she's having fun." He folded his arms. "You better give that back to her right now."

"Or what?"

"I'll take it from you."

The bully laughed. "Just try it, punk!" He said, as he wound up his arm and punched him, but the boy ducked and punched him hard in the gut. "Ooof!" He grunted and then the boy kicked him harder in the shin, and then kicked him where no one should ever be kicked as the bully fell on his knees and in tears as the boy took the doll away from him.

"I'll take that." He grinned and walked back to the girl, before turning his head to the bully and giving off a glare as the bully screamed and ran off.

"MOMMY! MOOOOOMMY!" The bully cried.

"Here you go." The boy smiled to the teary eyed girl.

"Th-thank you…" The girl sniffed.

"You're not hurt, are you?"

"No…"

"That's a relief. What's your name?"

"Z-Zelda."

"Zelda? Oh, that's a pretty name! I'm Link, nice to meet ya!"

* * *

Zelda opened her eyes and shot up. "Link!" She shouted and panted a bit, leaning on to her bed for support. "Oh… oh thank goddess, it was just a dream…" She sighed with relief and then felt pain in her shoulder as she looked over to see that her left arm was covered in bandages that went up to her shoulder as there were also bandages surrounding her forehead and a bandage over her cheek. "What the…?" She wondered and then looked around, seeing that she was in a hospital.

"Where am I?" She asked as she got up and then walked over to the door and opened it up, the light blinding her for a few seconds and then saw rubble on the ground, but also saw Hylians rebuilding Castle Town. At first, she was wondering what happened to Castle Town, and then it hit her. The death of the Royal family, Link going crazy, her and Aryll being a fugitive, a quest that Hylia wanted her to do, the Master Sword, magic powers, Aryll dying, nearly died from Link impaling her, restoring Hyrule five years later with the Hyrule Warriors, the insane battle in Castle Town, Impa sacrificing herself and killing off her best friend for good. It all came back to her.

"…It… it really happened…" Zelda whispered. "It wasn't a dream…"

"Heeeeeey!" A voice called out as Zelda turned to see the Postman running over to her. "Special delivery for the woman who saved Hyrule!" He said, giving her a letter. "I was told to give this to you when you got out of the hospital. Take care!" He then ran off, then Zelda opened up the letter to read it.

_"__Zelda, come to Hyrule Castle once you wake up. Ganondorf."_

Zelda tilted her head before walking to the castle, as she looked around to see destroyed buildings and Hylians hauling off parts from the Guardians.

"Oi! We've got another body over here!"

"Which is it this time?"

"A Gerudo, I think… or it could be a Zora, I'm not sure!"

Zelda shuddered a bit as she walked. It felt like it was only just a few minutes ago that the Hyrule Warriors were getting themselves killed over Link… she wasn't sure how many died, but she imagined it was pretty high. A few townsfolk spotted Zelda and did a friendly wave to her as she waved back.

"At least this nightmare is over." One Hylian said.

"Yeah, but who's gonna rule over us now?"

"I'm sure they'll think of something… right?"

Zelda made it to the castle gates, or what was left of it due to the chaos that had unfolded, and then saw a few guards conversing where they saw Zelda. "Well, look who it is. It's miss Savior of Hyrule herself." A guard said. "How you feeling?"

"A little bit in pain, but I'll survive." Zelda responded.

"That's how the survivors are feeling. Everyone's in some sort of pain, yet they'll get by." The other soldier chuckled. "Anyway, your friends are expecting you in the throne room."

"Thanks." Zelda nodded to him and then walked to the throne room, looking at the rubble that was caused inside with her fight with Link. She let out a sigh and then kept walking to the throne room until she made it inside, seeing the Hyrule Warriors talking amongst themselves.

"Well well well! Look who decided to wake up!" Midna suddenly exclaimed as everyone turned to her before they started clapping and cheering.

"Th-this isn't necessary…" Zelda muttered.

"It was my idea." Midna said. "I said: "Hey, let's cheer for the woman of the hour when she comes into the throne room!"." She grinned. "You're welcome."

"I… see." Zelda quietly said. "How long was I out?" She asked. _Please don__'__t say five years, please don't say five years, please don't five years… _She repeated in her head.

"Oh, you were out for five months." Midna said, and then got elbowed by Urbosa. "OOOF! Alright… you were out for a couple of days."

"That's reassuring." Zelda laughed. "…What happened after I conversed with Hylia?"

"Hyrule became restored." Fi said, who was out of the Master Sword. "Of course, it didn't happen in the blink of an eye. Everyone's chipping in to help restore it to its proper order."

"You requested Hyrule to become restored, so the Goddesses dispersed the darkness that was within Hyrule. They didn't actually help rebuild, but they got rid of the heavy dark stuff." Daruk said. "Oh! But they _did _make Death Mountain come back to life!" He laughed. "Yeah, that's right, she's purring again!"

"If you call erupting as 'purring', then I suppose you're right." Revali rolled his eyes.

Zelda looked at Ganondorf. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, I had the wind knocked out of me. When I came to, you had killed Link once and for all." Ganondorf said. "As for casualties, a number of Rito, Gorons, Zoras, Lynels, Hylians and the like were killed in combat. Then we lost Impa."

"I was hoping Zant would've been killed… yet to my dismay, he's still kicking." Midna sighed.

"Wait, I was supposed to what?" Zant asked while chatting with Lana and Saria, the latter having a sling over her right arm.

Zelda looked around. "Where's Purah and Paya?"

"Mourning over Impa's gravestone. Her sacrifice traumatized them pretty good…" Darunia rubbed his head. "Still, if it wasn't for her, we would've lost that fight."

"Wait… where's Groose?" Zelda asked. "I don't see him anywhere in here." Her eyes widened. "No, don't tell me he-"

"He didn't die, don't worry." Nabooru said. "In fact, he-"

"-Went to the hospital to check up on you when you disappeared on me." A voice interrupted as Zelda turned around and saw Groose with a cut on his cheek, but he was still smiling.

"Groose!" Zelda exclaimed and hugged him. "…Oh my goodness, your cheek… it's-"

"Ah, I wouldn't worry about it." Groose waved it off. "The important thing here is that you're up and at 'em!"

"Yeah." Zelda nodded and then turned to Ganondorf. "Alright, so I imagine there's more to just a little reunion?"

"Yes, actually. While I was checking the castle out, I came across Link's room." Ganondorf said. "There's something that you should see."

"I can escort you to his majesty's chambers if you'd like." A guard said. "Then again, you already know where it is since you've been in there a lot."

"Oh ho! You've been in his room a lot?" Midna gave her a cheeky look.

"Midna!" Zelda blushed. "It's not like that!"

"Okay, whatever you say!" Midna chuckled as Zelda walked over to Link's chambers, her heart feeling heavy with each step as her breathing deepened as she soon made it to his door and took a deep breath before entering the room.

She looked around the room, seeing that it was still in great condition except for the broken glass thanks to Link's loud howling and glass was littered everywhere. A gentle breeze entered the room as the drapes flew freely. She let out a sigh. "Alright… what are you wanting me to see?" She wondered as she spotted his desk with a journal on top of it. She curiously walked over to it and saw a piece of paper on it that read _"Open me." _

She opened the journal and then saw a message written on the first page.

_"__My dearest Zelda, if you are reading this, then that means you most likely have killed me. I can't believe I'm writing in this journal that my mother gave me when I was a young boy, I wanted nothing to do with it… but with any ounce of humanity I have left in me, I decided to open up this dusty journal and write what I want to say. I am not writing this to call you out nor am I writing any hateful things about you. With any ounce of humanity I have left, I just want to say… thank you. Thank you for ending my life. I have done horrible things these past five years and hearing about you coming back alive from Ghirahim warmed my heart, but the cold darkness in my heart made me angry. I had thought I had ended you so you wouldn't get in my way… and yet, here you are alive and well, most likely putting a stop to my plans. In a way, I'm grateful. _

_Truth be told, I regretted killing my parents. I regret killing my sister, that little bundle of joy. When I wanted to be king, I wanted someone to be with and I never stopped thinking about you as my queen. Of course, that never came to pass when the Triforce spoke to me saying that I am unfit to rule Hyrule. I__… __may have lost my temper. I'll admit that I made some mistakes like peeking into the women's bathhouse, but… don't we all make mistakes? That's what makes us human after all… but I suppose it comes down to the fact that I was unrepentant after being caught so many times, covering myself in sin so many times that the Goddesses thought my sister would've made a better candidate. Who could blame them?_

_My biggest regret was turning you down after I was in despair. I should__'__ve taken the offer. You always cheered me up when I was feeling down and we'd go have a bite to eat, ship rocks into Lake Hylia, fish, whatever it was, you would always think of something for us to do together. I always found it strange that you have had a fascination for frogs and wanted me to taste a live frog for some reason, but nonetheless, you would always cheer me up. Personally, I think frog legs are better cooked than say… alive, but that's just me. I should have never pushed you away… you are my best friend, and I still think of you as one. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have become the tyrant that I became._

_After I presumably murdered you, it wasn__'__t until-"_

* * *

Link opened up a cell door. "There you are." He smirked and picked up the sword, as it started to glow and then Ghirahim popped out.

"Mmm… who disturbed my sleep? Who the devil are you?"

"I am Link, the king of Hyrule. What is your name?"

"Ghirahim, the most fabulous spirit to reside in a sword." Ghirahim explained. "…Hmm, something's not right."

"What is?"

"If you're the king, then where is your queen? Resting in the castle awaiting your return?"

"I am not married."

"Oh, so you're seeking a hand in marriage?"

"I'm not planning on marrying anyone anytime soon."

"A king always needs a queen." Ghirahim said. "Tell me, if you were to pick any girl out there in Hyrule, who would you pick?"

"Oh, that's easy." Link chuckled. "It would be-" He paused, his lower lip trembling a bit. "…Zelda…"

"Zelda, hmm? Well, let's go meet her then."

"…There's a problem."

"Oh? What is it, is she sick? Is she a workaholic nurse? Is she abroad? Is she in another castle?"

"No… she's dead."

"Oh, I'm so sorry. Well, I suppose avenging her will do. Now let's go find her killer and you can have your revenge, then you can find another girl!"

"No one will want me… for what I've done…"

"What are you blabbing about?"

"Don't you get it?! I murdered her! I murdered Zelda!"

Ghirahim looked at him in surprise. "Oh, this is awkward…" He mused as Link fell on his knees and started crying loudly.

"What have I done! I killed my best friend in my own anger! Now I'm truly alone!"

* * *

_"__-It wasn't until I retrieved Ghirahim's sword that reality fully set in that I had killed you. At that moment, I had lost all of my humanity… or what was left of it anyway. When I was obsessing over wanting you dead, I had no realized what would happen on this path that I was taking. When I finally realized what I had done… I knew that there was no turning back. I understood why you ran away from me, because you didn't want to follow me in the path I was taking. I had become a dangerous fool. I killed my parents. I nearly killed my sister if you didn't intervene, but I was so blinded in my anger that I wanted you dead too. If I had just taken that invitation to dinner, I wouldn't have become who I am today! A monster. A monster that killed his sister._

_I nearly danced for joy when I heard you were still alive, but then I had become angry because you were still a thorn in my side and I wanted to get rid of you. As of this writing, you have killed Wizzro and I have taken an elixir, declaring that I will kill you personally. In any ounce of humanity I have left, I fought my way to my room to write this only journal entry specifically for you. There is no way back__… __I am actually hoping that you kill me to not only save Hyrule, but to save me as well. I beg you… please end my life. Hyrule is not getting better at all, and at this rate… Hyrule will become a dystopia, even though I promised my people that Hyrule will change for the better, but even I know that I'm ruining Hyrule. If you don't kill me, then all of Hyrule will be lost._

_As you__'__re reading this, I am imagining you're either relieved, sad, or angry. I am betting on the latter. I do not blame you for hating me… who can blame you? I most likely have brought you to tears so many times that my shoulder wasn't there for you to cry on. You should not have been burdened with saving Hyrule and stopping me. My apologies for putting you through so much torment and grief. Before I close this, I just want to say that you are an excellent leader, more better than I am. You lead the Hyrule Warriors… I quite honestly am a little envious that I'm not a part of it. To be quite honest, you would do a better job at ruling Hyrule than I ever could. I do recommend finding a husband to rule Hyrule with you. No one should rule a kingdom alone. _

_In closing__… __this is probably going to sound cliche, but I truly love you Zelda… and I wish you the best. I hope in some other timeline that we rule the kingdom together as king and queen, no… as best friends, though I hope Ganondorf never becomes evil. He kinda scares me, to be honest. You are my best friend, Zelda… and I'm hoping that you will survive this upcoming battle. I'm not sure what I would do if I lived in a world without you alive. Good luck… you're going to need it._

_PS: If you are reading this and you are actually crying, I have a request: Dry your tears. No more crying. I__'__d hate to see my best friend cry her eyes out."_

Zelda finished reading the entry, sitting on his bed and silently sobbing with tears falling on the journal pages. "Oh Link…" She sobbed.

"Hey, is everything okay?" A voice asked as Zelda looked up to see Groose in the doorway. "I got a little worried."

"N-no… everything's fine." Zelda sniffed a bit as Groose sat on the bed next to her and gently took the journal from her and read it while Zelda rested her head on Groose's shoulder.

"…Wow, that's pretty deep." Groose said. "…You need a moment?"

"Yeah, that'll be great…" Zelda nodded and sighed deeply.

* * *

_A few minutes later__…_

Zelda walked back to the throne room with Groose. "Look who's back." Ganondorf chuckled. "I assume you read it?"

"I have." Zelda nodded.

"I assume you two did something else?" Midna smirked, earning a slap upside the head from Nabooru. "Ow! Do you people _not _know how to take a joke? Geez!"

"What did it say?" Mipha curiously asked as Zelda explained what the journal entry said. "Oh my!"

"The former king wanted you to become queen of Hyrule? I don't see a problem with that." A soldier mused. "But uh… there's just a problem. You're just a commoner and they only become royalty if they marry into the family… but the royal family is all dead." He turned to his fellow soldier. "So what, do we just give her the title right now?"

"How the heck should I know! This is new territory for all of us!"

"Well, as King of Gerudo, I fully support Zelda becoming a queen." Ganondorf said.

"Whoa whoa WHOA, time out!" Zelda exclaimed. "I haven't exactly married into the family… nor have I become a princess!"

"Well, Link did say that you are a better leader. I think he pretty much wanted you to become the next ruler." Ruto pointed out.

"But… doesn't anyone remember that little test King Rhoam gave Link? I'll have to do all of that and-"

"Relax." Lana told her. "I spoke with the goddesses after the battle, they personally believe you are fit to be queen of Hyrule."

Zelda sweatdropped. "I think I should be princess first. I mean, Princess Zelda has a better ring to it than Queen Zelda, right?"

"The goddesses gave you their blessing. You're the new ruler." Lana said.

"Oh goodness… this is going by so fast." Zelda groaned. "…But wait a minute, what about the Triforce?"

"Look on your wrist." Lana said as Zelda looked down and saw the Triforce of Courage was still on it, and then Zelda looked to Ganondorf who still had the Power of Wisdom. "If you're wondering about the Triforce of Power…" Lana held her wrist up as the Triforce of Power glowed brightly on her wrist. "Ta-dah!"

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this…" Zelda groaned.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not hellbent on destroying anything. The Triforce of Power is in good hands. The Goddesses said they think the Triforce should be safe in good hands. She trusts all three of us!"

Zelda sighed with relief. "That's good. Alright, let's get this coronation over with. Where's that priest guy?"

"Uh… this is awkward… the priest was killed in the battle. He wanted to help fight and protect Hyrule from Link… aaaand he was killed when a Guardian stepped on him after he tripped over some rubble." A soldier explained.

"I can do it." Ganondorf said.

"No no no, I can do it!" Mipha smiled.

"Pfft, you two would mess it up. Let a professional handle this." Rito teased. "Yours truly, at your service!"

"You kidding? You'd probably forget the words, bird brain." Daruk teased.

"Oh, like you could do it better!"

"Let's have Zelda decide." Urbosa said.

Zelda folded her arms. "Hmm… how about… you, Midna?"

"Me?! Nuh-uh, I don't think I'm capable of something like that!" Midna exclaimed.

"Hmm…" Zelda turned to Lana. "How about you?"

"Alright, but on one condition."

"Hmm?"

"You have to make me your advisor!" Lana winked. "If you thought I'd go away after this crazy adventure we had… well, you're not getting rid of me _that _easily!"

Zelda laughed. "Alright, you got it!"

"Sweet!" Lana fist pumped. "I'll go let the people know!" She ran off.

"Th-The people?! I thought this was going to be a private event…" Zelda sighed. "Oh lovely."

"Quick question. Who is your king going to be?" A soldier asked.

"Um… well…"

"Please, pick me! I promise I won't usurp your title and throw everything in a tizzy!" Zant pleaded. "I want to be away from that wench!"

"Groose."

"Me?!"

"Oh come on!"

"…What was that on me being a wench, Zant?" Midna folded her arms.

"Ah crud…"

"You and I are going to have some _fun _later…" Midna snarled at him.

Groose looked at Zelda. "Zelda, I'm just your knight. I don't think I'm ready to be a king!"

"I'm not ready to be royalty either, yet here we are." Zelda pointed out.

Groose chuckled a bit. "Fair point."

"Oh good, I can hear the wedding bells already." Midna teased.

"They haven't gone on any dates yet." Navi said. "Well, that I know of at least."

"True, but they did spend a lot of time together adventuring to save Hyrule." Midna said. "That's technically a date and no, you can't change my mind about this!"

"Oh good grief…" Ganondorf groaned.

Groose laughed. "I suppose you're right."

"Yeah." Zelda giggled. "I suppose so."

"Alrighty, I invited everyone!" Lana exclaimed as sounds of footsteps were heard as the people who have survived the battle were coming into the throne room.

"That's… a lot of people." Zelda paled a bit as one of the soldiers gave Lana the crowns and and a scepter.

"Thank you very much!" Lana grinned and walked over to the duo. "Alright you two, do you both promise not to drag Hyrule into the ground, live a prosperous life together as king and queen, searing you two will be benevolent rulers as husband and wife?"

"…Wait a second, is this a coronation _and _a wedding at the same time?" Zelda asked.

"Ah, don't sweat it, we'll have a proper wedding after this!" Lana winked as everyone laughed.

"Well, in case, I do." Groose said and turned to Zelda who smiled back at him.

"I do!" She smiled.

"Alriiiiight, all hail the king and queen of Hyrule!" Lana cheered as the two watched everyone bowing on one knee

"…I could get used to this." Groose said.

"This is gonna be… interesting." Zelda said.

* * *

_A few weeks later__…_

"Perfect! The town is back to the way it was!" Groose grinned. "…At least, I think it is. Never seen this town in one piece, to be honest."

"I can assure you, your highness, that the town looked exactly like this." A woman said. "…Say, where's your wife anyway?"

"Come to think of it, I didn't see her at all this morning. Hmm, must be at a meeting." Groose shrugged.

_With Zelda__…_

Zelda was standing over a gravestone with Paya and Purah. "I have to congratulate you for becoming the new ruler of Kakariko." Zelda said.

"Thank you." Paya smiled. "I have to thank you for requesting to put the new Kakariko within the city borders. The construction is going well as we speak." She said and turned to the gravestone that read _Here lies Impa, a true Kakarikan warrior_. "We'll put a memorial inside the walls for my mother."

"That's good." Zelda nodded. "I'll be sure to visit it often."

"You better! It's going to be beautiful." Paya said and then turned around. "See ya, Zelda!"

"Bye!" Purah waved as the two walked off while the queen turned her head back to the gravestones before walking a short distance and coming across the royal family's tombstones, but she was looking directly at Link's.

"I still don't get why you wanted me to become the next ruler of Hyrule… but I thank you. You were my best friend, and I sure hope you're smiling down from wherever you may be." She said and dug in her pocket, pulling out a flower. "You may not know what this is, because you were never a flower person, but this is a Silent Princess." She said and then placed it down on the grave and let out a giggle. "You always hated how I put flowers in your hair… but there's nothing you can do about it now." She teased before sighing. "Oh, Link… I still love you very much… and I wish you were still alive, but not as someone who was drunk with power." She said. "My husband and I are doing our best, and we'll continue doing so." She smiled.

_"__Master, I believe it's time to go." _Fi said within the sword.

"Of course." Zelda nodded and turned away. "Goodbye, Link." She said and then walked off, as she climbed on Epona and took off, but then stopped as she turned her head back at the gravestone, noticing a spirit standing near Link's gravestone and letting out a chuckle, doing a friendly wave to it before heading off back to Castle Town with Epona.

* * *

**A little cheesy at the end, I know... but eh, the story had to end some way!**

**Anyway, I can't believe this story is over... it feels just like yesterday that I posted the first chapter of this story, and now it's come to an end. I've had a lot of fun writing this and I hope y'all had a lot of fun reading this crazy story that I cooked up! **

**In any case, see ya! **

**EDIT: I'm not sure how I managed to screw that up at the end, but I fixed it. I think I got a little too trigger happy on the Enter button. Heheh... whoops. **


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